DIGEST: Saveur

[zora]

Playing a little catch-up with my newly revived subscription, so here's the March issue. April will be along shortly.

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Saveur

March 2004, no. 73

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First: Editor's Letter

For Saveur's tenth anniversary: return of Real-Life Kitchen column, new sidebar in Fare section, full-page essay, and nine issues per year, rather than eight; new issue is devoted to wine.

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Fare:

Vegetarian cafes in Cuba--a response to meat scarcity post-USSR meltdown--cater to locals and inspire pride: everything sold is a product of local agriculture. By Richard Schweid

No Rooz (Persian New Year), Tehran, 1978: highlight is kebab kubideh. By Ramin Ganeshram

Recipe: Kebab Kubideh (smoky ground lamb and beef)

Brewpubs in Seoul are booming, thanks to a change in Korean law. By Laura Shin

Saint Joseph's Day, March 19, at Rizzo's Malabar Inn near Philly, calls for an elaborate altar made of bread to honor the patron saint of carpenters, confectioners, and fighters against communism. Also served: "Saint Joseph's pants," deep-fried pastries filled with spiced and honey-sweetened mashed chickpeas. By Marlene Parrish

Recipe: Saint Joseph's Pants

The coffee break as we know it was started by Norwegian women working in tobacco fields in Stoughton, Wisconsin, in the 1870s, demanding breaks to check on kids and meals. By Iris Brooks

New video game Restaurant Empire simulates restaurant ownership. By Neil Plakcy

Agenda:

Mediterranean Food Festival, Malta; Second Annual Old West Chuck Wagon Cook-off, Austin, Texas; Pasifika Festival, Auckland: Polynesian village cultural exchange; March 14: Anniversary of the shopping cart, invented in 1936 in OKC; Chocolate Moose Festival, cabins at Murie Ranch in Grand Teton National Park are stocked with sweet treats; Foire au Boudin: Mortagne-au-Perche, France; Rainbow and Ramps, Cherokee, NC; March 28: birthday of Frederick Pabst, father of PBR

One Good Bottle: Maison Louis Jadot Château de Bellevue, Morgon 2002 ($16); 2001 is even better, but hard to find

On the side:

Study shows Armagnac may help prevent blood clots. US baby-name trend: brand names like Skyy, Del Monte, Courvoisier. Octodog gadget cuts hot dogs into eight pieces [yes, there's ordering info in the back of the mag]. American Idol winner Ruben Studdard opening a restaurant in Birmingham.

Book Review:

Classic Conran: Plain, Simple and Satisfying Food, by Terence and Vicki Conran (Conran Octopus, 2004)

Homey recipes such as poached turbot in beurre blanc and rabbit terrine . . . even if the Conrans have a lifestyle involving châteaux and champagne. Recipes aren't too elaborate, but require some cooking skills; tips and some humor round out a solid book.

Recipe: Ham Saupiquet (ham cooked in red wine with cream and juniper berries)

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Cellar

By John Winthrop Haeger

Grüner veltliner is newly respected: grassy, mineral, perfume-driven. Most important plantings are in northeastern Austria; best vineyards in Danube Valley: Wachau (the beefiest), Kamptal, Kremstal. Grüners can be a little viscous and either refreshingly lean or finishing long and rich. They "almost never express wod; thus they provide welcome relief from chard-ennui." [Ah, wine humor.]

Tasting notes: 12 grüner veltliners, from Domäne Wachau Terrasen 2002 ($14; main blend from Wachau's cooperative, mossy nose, crisp, light) to Bründlmayer Lamm 2001 ($46; slightly truffle-scented, ripe, rich, satiny midpalate, peppery finish)

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Essay

What Kids Knead

Children's cookbooks are everywhere today, but they're teaching curious lessons

Kelly Alexander notes that 7,500-plus cookbooks cater to kids, but don't seem to actually teach them how to cook, or why they would want to cook. Kids should learn the thrill of transforming simple ingredients into something remarkably different: french toast, for instance. Also, they should know that cooking is fun, not a chore. Her favorite book for this: Betty Crocker's Cook Book for Boys and Girls, from 1957, reissued by Wiley.

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Drink

Should This Wine Exist?

Aren't the vienyards too far north? Isn't the grape a minor one? Not according to the makers of the Loire Valley's best reds

By John Winthrop Haeger

The Chinon, Bourgueil and St-Nicolas appellations--primarily cabernet franc grapes--are remarkable, given all the factors working against them.

Tasting Notes: Couly-Dutheil Les Gravières d'Amador Abbé de Turpenay 2002 ($10) is fruity in the nose, light in body, fading fast on the palate. Charles Joguet Clos de la Dioterie 2000 ($32) has a big generous bouquet, an underpinning of tannin, and a faint mineral character.

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Source

South River Miso is handmade by Christian and Gaella Elwell in western Massachusetts. By Suki Casanave

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Classic

Scottish shortbread. By Camas Davis

Recipe: Shortbread, using a blend of cake flour and rice flour

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Eat Drink Mother Daughter: Enjoying the abundant, humble cooking of modern Tainan, in southern Taiwan, two women savor the taste of what endures

By Mei Chin

Tainan is more prosperous now than in author's mom's time, but food is still earthy: all parts of pig, silvery milkfish (shi-mu), pa-hsin-a (a rich sauce made of inexpensive ingredients like pork belly, dried shrimp, dried shiitakes and shallots). Mom gets teary-eyed while eating pigs' feet. Gorgeous pics of seafood markets and meals (by Jun Takagi).

Recipes:

O-a-chian (scrambled eggs with oysters)

Hsia-chuan (shrimp wrapped in caul fat)

Hai-hsian Chou (seafood and rice soup)

Tan-tzu Mian (Tainan-style noodles--brought from Fukien by immigrants in 17th century)

Ang-chim-bi-kou (crab with sticky rice)

Pa-hsin-a (pork and shrimp sauce--served with crab and sticky rice)

Ng-kim-chien-hi-to (fried milkfish stuffed with spicy paste made from the liver)

Guide lists hotels, restaurants and sites in Tainan

Nick Peirano Feeds the Oregon Wine Country: In his modest restaurant in McMinnville, this third-generation Italian-American has served up hearty fare and championed local vintners for more than 25 years

By David Sarasohn

Peirano opened his resto in 1977, before Oregon wine scene took off; it became a meeting place and gossip hub for the region. His food is simple, not architectural, and some menu items are tailored to show off pinot noir and pinot gris: béchamel lasagne rather than red-sauce, for instance.

Recipes:

Seared Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus with balsamic vinegar syrup

Minestrone--heavy on carrots, celery, with a big dollop of pesto

Steamed Manila Clams with a Dijon-Caper Sauce

Rabbit Braised in Oregon Pinot Gris and Rosemary with Gorgonzola Polenta

Dungeness Crab and Pine Nut Lasagne

Chocolate Brandy Hazelnut Torte ("like a Belgian chocolatier's take on a Twix bar")

Catalan Contemporary: Modern cooking in Spain's most creative region [sorry, Basques] is innovative, exciting, and sometimes deliciously shocking--and it didn't start with El Bulli

Colman Andrews goes to town on his favorite topic, tracing history of nouvelle Catalan pre-Adrià. People like Josep Mercader, Ramon Cabau, Lluis Cruanyas, and Jean Luc Figueras stripped down traditional Catalan dishes like es niu ("the nest": wild birds, salt-cod tripe, stockfish, cuttlefish, pork meatballs, potatoes, rabbit, and eggs, all in a caramelized onion sauce) to their elemental flavors and parts. Mar i muntanya dishes are another standard, mixing seafood and meat. Current great chefs and restos: Carles Gaige at Can Gaige, Santi Santamaria and Àngels Serra at Can Fabes, Figueras.

Sidebar: Ferran Adrià and his brother often dine at Julius resto, in Barceloneta, where fish is cooked to order.

Recipes:

Tatin de Cua de Bou (oxtail tatin)

Gelat de Crema Catalana (burnt cream ice cream)

Farcellets de Col Farcits de Cargols, Calamars i Salsa de Mar i Muntanya (cabbage stuffed with snails, with squid and 'sea and mountain' sauce)

Llobarro, Cruixentt di Botifarra Negra, Eriçons de Mar, i Salsa de Pa Torrat (sea bass with blood sausage, sea urchins, and toasted bread sauce)

Canelons amb una Crema de Tofona (cannelloni with truffle cream)

Caviar amb Cansalada (pork belly with caviar--though usually boneless pork neck is used in Catalunya)

Bacallà Confitat amb Salsa d'All i Rossinyols (salt cod with garlic cream and chanterelles)

Guide: hotels and restos in Barcelona and around

The Real Rosarita: My grandparents created a Mexican food empire based on assembly-line tamales and tortillas, but at home, everything was made by hand, with Nana's flair

Susan Guerrero tells, with a touch of magical realism, how the Rosarita brand of tamales and other frozen foods was developed in Mesa, Arizona. The Guerrero family's roots were in Sonora, Mexico--inspiration for most of the home cooking, and the original Rosita (later Rosarita) tamales with red sauce.

Sidebar: Enchilada means only 'dipped in chile' ('chile'd'), so many different forms: flat, stacked, rolled, topped with mole or green chile?

Recipes:

Yellow Hot Relish (caribe chiles and garlic with vinegar)

Fried Pork Chops (thin-sliced, preferably fried in lard)

Basic Red Chile Sauce

Red Chile Tamales (stuffed with black olives)

Capirotada (bread pudding, traditional Lenten dish: bread, colby cheese, butter baked with raisins and sweet syrup infused with cilantro and scallions)

Sonoran Enchiladas (in this case, small thick tortillas fried, dipped in sauce and topped with scallions, cheese, olives, lettuce)

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In the Saveur Kitchen

Allioli of Catalonia is emulsion of garlic and olive oil--no egg. Ferran Adrià makes it into a foam using a nitrous oxide cream whipper--which can be used on any liquid food with enough protein.

Recipe: Anxoves a la Romana amb Maionesa Calenta (deep-fried fresh anchovies with warm mayonnaise)

Catalan fish stock, the base for many sauces, usually uses whole fish, which is then used in other dishes.

Recipe: "Fumet" de Peix i Mariscos (fish and shellfish stock--but this uses just bones, enriched with shrimp shells and tomatoes)

Biscotti-like almond cookies (carquinyolis) are common in Catalan bakeries; can be served with ice cream.

Recipe: Carquinyolis

Real-life Kitchen of Gail Monaghan, cookbook writer who lives in lower Manhattan. Oodles of storage space, lots of wood, clever two-inch-ledge against walls above counters holds spices, oils

Iranians prepare rice three ways: steamed with salt and butter (kateh), layered with meats and fruits (polow), and chelo-style, steamed to make crisp golden crust, called tah dig.

Recipe: Chelo (Persian steamed rice with a golden crust)

In the Saveur library:

The Professional Chef by the Culinary Institute of America (Wiley, 2002): "great all-around culinary how-to and reference book" [i beg to differ--it's only great if you already know how to cook . . . and then you probably don't need it.]

Tamales 101 by Alice Guadalupe Tapp (Ten Speed Press, 2002): step-by-step diagrams, good recipes

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Moment

Secretaries working at the Topps Chewing Gum factory in Brooklyn blowing bubbles while they work (1960)

[zora]

Saveur, April 2004

First: Is slow-cooked brisket a health hazard? The National Cattlemen's Beef Association sort of implies it; Colman Andrews asserts no.

Fare:

Danny, James and Me: Maida Heatter recalls a visit from Danny Kaye. She soothed his anger over her knife storage setup with James Beard's onion sandwiches.

Recipe: Onion sandwiches

Slick Business: A suave Roman film director gets into artisanal olive oil. By Camas Davis

Capping It Off: a brief history of the French chef's toque. By JoAnn Milivojevic

Drinking the Blues: Curacao can transcend its cheesy reputation: try the bourbon-based man o' war cocktail. By Carrie Gaska

Recipe: Man o' war

Tangerine Dream: Pixie tangerines are in season starting late March. Look for them in Ojai and around. By Margo True

On the Side: a new map of Wisconsin highlights cheesemakers…Swiss cheese expert Fredy Girardet will be on PBS with Charlie Trotter in April. Fergus Henderson's Nose to Tail Eating is finally available in the US…Polish fishermen get a pike drunk on champagne.

Agenda: Helsinki beer festival, Jello art show, anniversary of Hostess Twinkies, Pelican Point Coconut Festival (Bahamas), birthday of 19th-century cookbook pioneer Eliza Acton, La Fete de Coquilles St-Jacques in Laguiy-de-la-Mer, Placer Country Strawberry Festival in Roseville CA, Colleton County Rice Festival in Waterboro, SC

One Good Bottle: The Gatekeeper McClaren Vale Shiraz 2001 ($34): "gentlemanly"

Book Review: From Curries to Kebabs: Recipes from the Indian Spice Trail, by Madhur Jaffrey. John Thorne praises this cookbook for its history, although the recipes have occasional flaws.

Recipe: Carrot curry with shallots and chiles

Essay: The Scarlet Letter

Colman Andrews ruminates on the value of the Atkins fad.

Reporter: Our Daily Corn Bread

The National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg, Tennessee, inspires all varieties, and reminiscence from author Reagan Walker.

Recipe: Basic Corn Bread

Recipe: Jalapeno-Bacon Corn Bread Muffins

Cellar: Bourbon Rises Again

A bourbon revival in the US sees new bottles on bar shelves:

Tasting notes: from Basil Hayden's ($30) "bright and engaging" 8-year-old to the "intriguing" Woodford Reserve ($30)

Source: Ed and Dan Bowyer of Bowyer Farms produce excellent prunes—and still call them that. By Gretchen VanEsselstyn

Classic: Shanghai soup dumplings: history and technique. By Margo True

Recipe: Xiao Long Bao (Shanghai soup dumplings)

The Incredible Island of Food and Wine: The tiny Australian state of Tasmania is fast becoming one of the world's top culinary regions. A visit with cheesemaker Jon Healey, fisherman Peter Rockliff, and others who make the most of this fertile island. By Chloe Osborne

Recipes: Steamed Mussels with Saffron, White Wine and Cream

Asparagus Frittata

Ocean Trout and Shaved Fennel Salad

Scallops in the Shell with a Leek, Pine Nut and Sourdough Gratin

Quail "Saltimbocca" with Asparagus and Almond Skordalia

Seared Lamb with Black Olive Butter and Bean, Snow Pea and Halloumi Cheese Salad

"Mum's" Pavlova

Sidebar: Tasmania in America: look for lapin cherries, Island Olive Grove oil, Tasmanian Honey Co.'s leatherwood honey, Ashgrove cheddar, King Island Dairy's blue cheese and more

Sidebar: Tasmania is home to 137 wineries. Available in the US: Meadowbank pinot noir, Grey Sands pinot gris, and others.

Guide: hotels and restaurants in Tasmania

Multicultural Meat: When brisket is cooked long and slow, it turns from tough to sweet and tender; no wonder its appeal crosses so many borders. A survey of brisket dishes in Czech, German, Texan, and Jewish traditions. By Kelly Alexander

Recipes: Uncle Kermit's Barbecued Cabbage

Texas-Style Smoked Brisket

Lil Pachter's Jewish-Style Braised Brisket

Kasha Varnishkas

Jim Goode's BBQ Brisket

Wine of the Sun: Transformed by heat into a potent, silky marvel, madeira is saturated with its extraordinary past. (Another story that starts with "Because of my French culinary training, I didn't appreciate…" Not sure why this drives me up a wall, but it seems to crop up an awful lot in all food writing….) By Megan Wetherall

Recipe: Madeiran Acorda (bread and egg soup)

Espetada (beef skewers)

Borrego a Vinhado (lamb braised in wine)

Poncha (Madeiran honey punch)

Reid's Palaca Madeira Cake

Sidebar: Madeiran cuisine is simple, robust, with espetada (grilled beef skewers) being emblematic.

Sidebar: Authentic fare can be found in mountain towns: rabbit stew, soup with egg and garlic broth, stewed fava beans.

Tasting Notes: Ten recommended madeiras, from $15 Blandy's 5-year-old Alvada to D'Oliveira Verdelho 1850 ($525).

Guide: hotels, restaurants and tasting houses in Madeira

Through the Doors of Lüchow's: For over a century, this Manhattan landmark offered rich, glorious food and impeccable hospitality to the most famous people in the world. Personal reminiscence and history by Miles Chapin

Recipes: Chicken Fricassée Berliner Art (chicken and lobster in a cream sauce)

Schnitzel Holstein (veal cutlets with fried eggs)

Schlemmerschnitte (steak tartare with caviar)

Herring in Dill Sauce

Pfannkuchen (German pancakes)

In the Saveur Kitchen: Madeiran molasses (mel de cana) and bolos de caco (cakes that accompany beef skewers)…versatile skordalia, a creamy Greek nut-and-garlic sauce…how to trim a brisket…electric smokers…probe oven thermometers are good for long cooking.

Recipes: Bolos de Mel (Madeiran 'honey' cakes)

Bolos de Caco (Madeiran 'tile' cakes)

Almond Skordalia

Jersey-Style Smoked Brisket

Kitchen: Barbara and Bob Gordon, chef-owners of Boba in Toronto blend old and new in their kitchen, with open shelves and "drawer" dishwashers

Moment: Vietnamese officers sip tea at a military training camp, 1991

[theabroma]

Stepping in for Zora, and trying to fathom format and how to, here, finally, is May 2004, Saveur's first all-wine issue. Relax, there's still wunnerful stuff to cook and eat

Regards,

Theabroma

Saveur, May 2004 – First All-Wine Issue

First:

Cork and Fork: Some things just naturally belong together. Colman Andrews plays marriage counselor to feared split up of food and wine.

Saveur Fare:

Wine for the Masses: Oh! Holy Grapes … Cormòns Winery braves the politics of competition to create and supply the Vatican with Vinum pro Sancta Missa, a surprisingly fine wine for the Holy Mass. By Denise Kiernan.

Better Ground:

Champagne cleans up its dirty little secret. Non! to plastic, pesticides, and rampant botrytis as growers “get green.” By Patrick Matthews.

Pickin’ and Grinnin’:

The first crush is the deepest. Richard Haake, Cakebread’s chef by day/Dirt Floor Cellar’s rogue vintner by night, saves a measure of his artisanal case for the kitchen. By Tony Poer

Recipe: Acqua Pazza/Striped Bass in Chardonnay Sauce

Let’s See the One for Château Janet Jackson:

A blush of x-rated wine label art. By Mort Hochstein.

Famous Potatoes, Darn Good Wine:

Pocatello, Idaho (pop. 53,000) where potatoes and pinot get along just fine. By Penelope Reedy.

On the Side:

It had to happen: www.winesingles.com is a 10-month old online dating service based in Walnut Creek, California.

Degustazioni d’Arte, a self-guided tour book presenting “oeno-centric artwork”.

Achille Castiglioni’s “Paro” Glass, featuring both sipping and slurping possibilities, is on exhibit at the Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum;

We love phonics: the new How to Pronounce French, German, and Italian Wine With names of more than 15,000 wines, varietals, etc.

Interesting indications from a VinExpo gender study on whether wine knowledge makes one more alluring to one’s intended. By Kelly Alexander.

One Good Bottle:

Blackstone Santa Lucia Highlands Reserve Chardonnay ($26): "… luscious …, thankfully not disfigured with oak, …”

Book Review:

Mighty Tasty is the only way to describe The Brady Book: Selections from Roy Brady’s Unpublished Writings on Wine., the previously unpublished pieces by a little-known wine writer. A collection of greatly overdue, and wonderfully lucid writings on wine.

Wine Fact, Wine Opinion:

The recent crush of excellent wine books in English are published by London-based Mitchell Beazley, with particular kudos to commissioning editor Hilary Lumsden. By Coleman Andrews.

Agenda

Grampians Grape Escape Wine & Food Festival, Halls Gap, Australia; Establishment of Château Mouton-Rothschild 1853, Pauillac, France; Winds & Wine Festival, Leesburg, Virginia; Americas Wild Rivers Coast Art, Seafood & Wine Festival, Gold Beach, Oregon; Blossom Days, Old Mission Peninsula, Michigan; Foire aux Vins d’Alsace, Guebwiller, France; Commemoration of The Judgment of Paris, 1976, Paris, France; Feria Internacional del Queso y del Vino de Tequisquiapan, Quéretaro, México.

Cellar: Unyielding Riesling.

Chardonnay largely replaced it, but in Australia it’s still the queen of grapes. By John Winthrop Haeger.

Tasting notes

Includes 12 fine Australian Rieslings form the Clare region and its neighbors – from Annie’s Lake Riesling 2003 ($14) to Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2003 ($29)

Essay: Tippling Points

There is nothing wrong with comparing wines, but do we have to keep score? Musings on the ultimate futility of scorecards and how St. Peter will likely receive Robert Parker’s 100-Point Scale. By Michael Steinberger.

Reporter: The Cooper’s Craft

Over the centuries, little has changed about wine barrels except how vintners use them. Includes a wonderfully detailed series of staves-to-barrel photos. By Kathleen Brennan.

Lives: The Odd Couple.

Two obsessive, very different vintners in New York’s Finger Lakes region shaped the course of East Coast winemaking. By Mort Hochstein

Source : Drinking in Style

When it comes to wine-related antiques, this dealer has the goods. Patricia Throttle, with a name from Casting Central, is one of Britain’s leading sources for vintage corkscrews, flagons, and other viniferous accoutrements. By Rope Bhattacharya

Classic : Meat Sauce

Steak, butter, and wine – what’s not to like?? Marchland de VIN is still basic black and a string of pearls for a great steak. By Laura Kiernan

Recipe: Biotech Marchand de Vin (Steak with Red Wine Sauce

Italian Ferment :

The Veneto, home of Soave, Valpolicella, and Amarone, has become Italy’s biggest wine producer – and one of its best. Visits with Leonildo Pieropan, Sandro Boscaini, Giuseppe Quintarelli, and others. By Patrick Matthews.

Recipes:

Risotto all’Amarone (Amarone Risotto),

Brasato all’Amarone (Beef Braised in Amarone),

Tagliatelle “Enbogonè (Tagliatelle with Borlotti Bean Sauce),

Pissota con l’Oio (Olive Oil Cake), and

Tortel (Wild Herb Frittata).

Tasting Notes: Ca’Rugate San Michele Soave Classico 2002 ($11) to Quintarelli Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico 1995 ($300)

Sidebar: Olive Oil and Horsemeat

Despite the largesse of the woods and fields, the Veronese kitchen is known for its facility with meat, including horse and donkey – specialties dating to Roman times.

The Guide: Hotels, Restaurants and Wineries in the Verona Wine Region

The Ebro Runs Through It:

Spain’s Rioja wine country is laced with rivers flowing timelessly onward – but a spirit of change percolates in the region’s vineyards and bodegas. Ranging through La Rioja, Spain’s premier fly-fishing area … and home of the tempranillo grape. By George Semler.

Recipes:

Menestra de Verduras con Lechecillas (Stewed Fried Vegetables with Lamb Offal)

Patatas a la Riojana (Potatoes Stewed with Paprika and Chorizo)

Esparragos Naturales a la Parrilla con Mahonesa de Hongos (Grilled White Asparagus with Mushroom Mayonnaise)

Pimientos del Piquillo

Trucha a la Riojana (Trout Stuffed with Serrano Ham)

Tasting Notes: 14 wines from the Rioja region, from Marqués de Riscal Reserva 1999 ($17) to Roda Cirsión 2000 ($195)

The Guide ) Hotels, Restaurants, and Wineries in the Rioja region.

Kings of the Rhône:

For the Chaves of Hermitage fame, making great wine and eating wonderful food is a way of life. Life at the vineyard, the family home and the family business, since1481. By Michael Steinberger.

Recipe:

Poireaux Grilles et Ail Étuvé sur Pain Grillé (Grilled Leeks and Stewed Garlic on Toast)

Côtelettes d’Agneau sur la Braise avec Crique Ardéchoise (Grilled Lamb Chops with a Potato Pancake)

Saladier de Pieds de Veau (Calves’ Feet Salad)

Foie Gras Souvarov (Potted Foie Gras with Black Truffles)

Poulet de Bresse Farci aux Asperges (Stuffed Bresse Chicken with Asparagus)

Gâteau au Chocolat « Marie-José » (Marie-José’s Chocolate Cake)

Tasting Notes:

Five wines from currently available vintages, from St-Joseph Offerus 2001 ($24) to Hermitage Rouge 2001 ($180)

The Future of Wine?:

Rob Sinskey is no tree hugger; he just thinks that organic viticulture produces better things to drink. The move to organic viticulture is flowing from the small artisanal producers to the bigger guys like Fetzer Bonterra and Clos du Bois. By John Frederick Walker.

Recipes:

Baby Beets with Herb Salad and Warm Chèvre

Crostini of Wild Mushrooms

Halibut Cheeks with Baby Leeks, Peas, and Fines-Herbes Gnocchi

Sidebar: Organic Rules

History of organic grape growing and the critera which must be met for certification.

Mr. Biodynamic

The complex, holistic agriculture theories of Rudolf Steiner … if it helps them make better wine, why snicker?

Tasting Notes:

A Magnificent Seven fro the Sinskey Vineyards, from Vin Gris of Pinot Noir 2003 ($16) to RSV Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon 2000 ($50).

In the Saveur Kitchen: Techniques and Discoveries from Our Editors and Recipe Testers

An American Transplant: Erin Cannon-Chave’s mother’s flaxseed crackers,

Italian Priorities: the serious jewel-box sized kitchen of Darrell Corti, of San Francisco’s premier Italian grocers, Corti Brothers

Flavor Cubed: glorious and essential glace de viande – the essence of stock

Sweet Endings: a crumbly almond shortbread, and specialty of Mantua

Recipes:

Flaxseed Crackers

Glace de Viande

Sbrisolona (Crumbly Almond Cake)

Fines-Herbes Gnocchi

In the Saveur Library:

Italian Cuisine by Tony May (Italian Wine and Food Institute, 1990)

The Spanish Table by Marimar Torres (Doubleday, 1986)

Moment: 2:00p.m., April 5, 2001, London

At the Ivor Spencer International School, butlers in training perfect their posture. By Martin Parr/Magnum.

Edited May 30, 2004 by theabroma (log)

[zora]

Saveur, June/July 2004

First: Deputy ed. Margo True resorted to luck to track down the original Belgian waffle recipe from the 1964 World’s Fair.

Fare:

Neon Wieners: The distinctive architecture of Chicago hot dog shops. By Ed Finkel

Canada Crocks: Medalta’s pottery pickling crocks are no longer—but the closed potteries in Medicine Hat are now a National Historic District, and visitors can buy smaller reproductions. By Leslie Javorski

The New Yeast: New, nontraditional sakes are being developed to court young Japanese drinkers. One brewery is now run by a woman. By Stephen Beaumont

Dessert Oasis: Kelly Alexander loves NYC’s cheerful Serendipity 3 café—now celebrating its 50th anniversary with a cookbook.

Recipe: The Manor Born banana cake with coffee buttercream

You Call That Haggis?: Potato chips flavored with the Scottish staple. By Bethan Kelly Patrick

This Beverage Is Right on Par: Nonalcoholic mixed drink of iced tea and lemonade is named after golfer Arnold Palmer. By Ellen Ficklen

On the Side: 100th anniversary of the Thermos, and a Smithsonian lunchbox exhibit; Mott’s applesauce now sold with Pop Rocks to mix in; Russian divers rescue ten tons of beer from the sea; giant plush microbe toys

Agenda: Trident gum’s 40th anniversary; opening of herring season in Holland (Vlaggetjesdag); freshwater ayu fish celebrated in Hayato, Japan; pudding fest in Hawley, Mass.; Dave Thomas of Wendy’s born July 2, 1932; Irish coffee fest in Foynes, Ireland; gooseberry show in Knutsford, GB

One Good Bottle: Gosset Celebris Rosé 1998 ($135): "elegant summer drinking"

Book Review: Sugar-Plums and Sherbet: The Prehistory of Sweets, by Laura Mason. Well researched and offbeat. Review by Fran Gage.

Recipe: Rose-flavored acid drops

Cellar: Pinot noirs of Sonoma County are developing nicely.

Tasting notes: From delicate, pretty Hamel Wines Campbell Ranch Vineyard 2002 ($28) to Flowers Andreen-Gale Cuvée 2001 ($50; sweet and smoky palate, long finish)

Essay: Stand by Your Pan

Joe Gracey on the historical connection between country music and food advertising.

Memories: Devouring the Globe

The 1964-65 World’s Fair in New York whetted America’s appetite—a first-hand recollection by David Sarasohn. Plus, hits from previous fairs: root beer (1876), cracker jack (1893), ice cream cones, French’s mustard and hamburgers (1904), Le Pavillon French resto (1939-40)

Recipe: Belgian waffles

Source: Choice cherries from Washington’s Batch Orchards. By Maggie Davis

Classic: Ranch dressing, really developed at Hidden Valley Ranch. By Colman Andrews

Recipe: Ranch dressing

Meat and Beer: The people of Monterrey, in northeastern Mexico, are crazy for goat, pork, beef—and the local cerveza…even for breakfast. By Robb Walsh

Recipes: Higado de Puerco (pork liver with lime and salt)

Chiles Toreados (roasted Serrano chiles)

Frijoles con Veneno (refried beans with “venom”)

Asado de Puerco (pork braised with ancho chile)

Machado con Huevo (shredded dried beef with scrambled eggs)

Cabrito en Salsa (kid goat with potatoes and poblano-tomato sauce)

Pencas de Nopales Crujientes Rellenas de Queso (crisp cactus paddles stuffed with goat cheese and Monterey jack)

Sidebar: A Town Awash in Beer: Cerveceria Cuahtemoc is the local star (Bohemia, Carta Blanca); also, microbrewery Especialidades Cerveceras

Guide: hotels, restaurants and shops in Monterrey

The Triumph of Cherries: The orchards of Traverse City, Mich., (aka Sour Cherry Capital of the World) are thriving. By Kelly Alexander

Recipes: Sour cherry pie

Wild rice salad with dried sour cherries

Brandied cherries

Telyatina s Vishnyami (roast veal with sour cherries)

Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (black forest cherry cake)

Sidebar: Sweet and Sour: a guide to sweet and sour cherry types (with photos)

Guide: hotels, restos, festivals in Traverse City

Back to the Basics: Jean-Pierre and Isabelle Silva gave up a Michelin star in Burgundy to lead a simple life in the Côte d’Azur. The fallback Saveur story: isn’t rustic French life great? By Colman Andrews

Recipes: Soupe de Tomate aux Herbes du Jardin, un Oeuf Poché, Cebette, et Tartine d’Olive (tomato soup with garden herbs, poached egg, scallion and olive-paste crouton)

Dorade Coriphène sur une Aubergine Confite, Crème de Coco, et Truffes Blanches d’Eté (mahimahi on slow-cooked eggplant with white beach cream and white summer truffles)

Mignon et Pérugine de Cochon, Pomme de Terre Nouvelle, Blette Sauvage, Jus au Vin Rouge (medallions of pork and Perugia sausage with new potatoes, wild chard and red wine sauce)

Tarte aux Figues, Matignon d’Abricots à la Sauge Ananas, Sorbet d’Abricot (fig tart with apricots macerated with pineapple sage and apricot sorbet)

Hickory House Memories: Rick Bayless has barbecue sauce in his veins, as he recounts in this story of his Oklahoma food heritage: his parents’ restaurant in OKC. Isn't rustic American life great?

Recipes: Hickory House smoked beans

Hickory House deviled eggs

Hickory House sour slaw

Hickory House sweet slaw

Hickory House stuffed pickles

Barbecue spice

Hickory House mild barbecue sauce

Barbecued ribs

Grandma Potter’s peach cobbler

Sidebar: Plates of My Heart: Bayless’s grandma’s Frankoma pottery is a vintage treasure.

Sidebar: Where to Eat OKC Barbecue: Van’s Pig Stand, Steve’s Rib, Earl’s Rib Palace

In the Saveur Kitchen: How to frost the Serendipity 3 banana cake (above) like a pro; chef Harlan Peterson of Tapawingo in Michigan makes great cherry granita; hot citrusy sangrita chases tequila; carne seca is Mexican beef jerky; a nifty rib rack holder for more efficient smoking; two heads—not two cloves—of garlic makes for an accidentally savory pasta

Recipes: tart red cherry granita

Sangrita

Kitchen: Jim Garramone of Evanston, Ill., put the fridge in an armoire outside the kitchen, and inscribed Fames Optimum Condimentum (hunger is the best seasoning) on the counter.

In the Saveur Library: The Perfect Cake, by Susan Purdy (Broadway Books, 2002): good troubleshooting and tips

Moment: A dog snacking at a beachtop table in Acapulco, 1973.

[zora]

More catch-up... Traveling and changing software delayed this one. Sorry about that.

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Saveur, August/September 2004

First: Colman Andrews explains why 80-year-old Marcella Hazan gets the cover story: "she is intolerant of stupidity and immune to fad and fashion…. She's not a saint, exactly; she's the real thing."

Fare:

Greek Cooler: The glory of the frappe, the genius Greek application of Nescafe. By Kathleen McCabe

Recipe: Nescafe Frappe

Noodles Galore: The easily astonished Regina Schrambling discovers vermicelli noodles are part of Indian cuisine, thanks to an in-flight meal.

Recipe: Seviyan Pulau (vermicelli pilaf)

Riding the Tasty Rails: Lunchbox meals available at Japan's train platforms. By Hiroko Shimbo

Football Nuts: History of the Ohio State buckeye. By Sara Bir

Recipe: Peanut butter buckeyes

Baking the Part: Baker Sarah Black consulted on the short-lived pastry-centric Broadway play Sixteen Wounded.

On the Side: Barilla's new shrine to pasta; a politicians' cookbook; Lost in Translation inspires food tours in Tokyo; Japan is anti-additive, which upsets the European business community

Agenda: Watermelon festival in Hope, Ark.; herb festival in Lismore, New Zealand; Aug. 22 is the anniversary of the founding of the United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (1966); breadfruit fest in Bath, Jamaica; Mary See of See's Candies fame born Sept. 15, 1851; cous cous fest in San Vito Lo Capo, Italy; 10th annual corndog fest in Dallas

One Good Bottle: Topanga Vineyards Edna Valley Edna Ranch Syrah 2001 ($27): "nicely gamy but with real Rhône-ish elegance"

Book Review: Eating My Words, by Mimi Sheraton, and Sirio, by Sirio Maccioni. eGullet's own Steven A. Shaw reviews this two gossip-heavy exposes of restaurant intrigue in the 1970s and 1980s (Sheraton as a NY Times critic, Maccioni as owner of Le Cirque).

Drink: Greek Revival

Ancient vineyards in Macedonia are being reinvented; the xynomavro grape is key. By Diane Kochilas.

Sidebar: High-end retsina fails—so it's back to the traditional recipe.

Tasting notes: 11 Macedonian wines, from tart but grapey Stelis Kechris Xinomavro 2001 ($11) to "rich, chewy, tannic" Domaine Anestis Babatzimopoulos Cabernet 2001 ($25)

Cellar: Looking at Bordeaux

Roger Morris reviews reds from Long Island.

Tasting notes: 12 bordeaux-style reds, from Comtesse Therese Hungarian Oak Merlot 2002 ($15; "tons of agreeable tannins, suggesting this one be laid down") to Macari Alexandra 2000 ($65; "celery seed in the nose…soft oak finish")

Memories: The Fountain of Youth

Robert Sherrill reminisces about working as a curbhop for the Norwood Pharmacy in N.C., in 1939.

Sidebar: Soda-jerk speak (including "flatwich," for a double-sided grilled sandwich)

Recipe: Banana split

Source: Atlantic smoked salmon from Max & Me. By Stephanie Ogozalek

Classic: Vietnamese summer rolls date from the 15th century. By Camas Davis

Recipe: Goi Cúôn Sót Túóng (summer roll with dipping sauce)

Drawing Out the Flavor: The secret of Italian home cooking resides within the ingredients themselves: Marcella Hazan tells us that supermarket lamb chops and other basic items are fine if you use the Italian technique of insaporire ("making tasty" through long sautéing).

Recipes: Zuppa dell'Ortolano (greengrocer's soup with onion, peppers, rapini and potatoes)

Carciofi Saltati e Fusi al Forno con la Mozzarella (sautéed artichokes baked with mozzarella)

Risotto di Zucca, Porri e Vongole (risotto with butternut squash, leeks and clams)

Ragù di Vitello col Sughetto di Peperoni Rossi, Verdi e Gialli (veal pasta sauce with red, green and yellow peppers)

Baja Napa: A small valley in the "other" California is making wine history with everything from cabernet to chasselas to nebbio. By Colman Andrews

Recipes: Sopa de Calabacín y Coliflor con Camarones (squash and cauliflower soup with shrimp)

Ensalada Tibia de Codorníz (warm quail salad)

Sorbet de Melón con Granizado de Limón (melon sorbet with lemon granita)

Sidebar: Tasting notes on wines from Valle de Guadalupe, from light, clean sauvignon blanc–semillon Monte Xanic Viña Kristel 2002 ($8) to tempranillo-cab Casa de Piedra Vino de Piedra 2002 ($60).

Guide: hotels, restos, fiestas and wineries in Valle de Guadalupe

Farmers of the Sea : The hardy oystermen of Arcachon sleep, eat and nurture their precious crops by the tides. (More French rusticity…) By Nancy Coons

Recipes: Huîtres Grillées au Beurre Blanc (grilled oysters with butter sauce)

Huîtres Rôties au Vin Blanc (roasted oysters with white wine)

Huîtres Gratinées (broiled stuffed oysters)

Moules au Jambon de Bayonne (steamed mussels with Bayonne ham)

Soupe des Pêcheurs (fishermen's soup)

Huîtres en Beignet (oyster fritters)

Bar Grillé (grilled sea bass)

Bar aux Raisins (sea bass with grapes)

Sidebar: France's best bivalves: other major oyster-producing areas

Sidebar: Months with an R: buy summer oysters from a reputable source

Sidebar: "Aw, shucks" no more: how to shuck an oyster, with pictures

Quintessential California: San Francisco's 25-year-old Zuni Café is not a perfect restaurant—which might just be why everybody loves it. By Thomas McNamee

Recipes: Piccolo Fritto (deep-fried celery hearts, squid and lemon slices with aïoli)

Chicken livers with bacon, pickled onions, Zante grapes and watercress

Frisée salad with hazelnuts, parmigiano-reggiano and roasted prune-plums

Hanger steak with salmorejo sauce, white beans and spinach

Grilled whole favas ("lick your oily, salty fingertips; it's part of the dish")

Spaghetti with clams

Zuni Gâteau Victoire

Roast chicken with bread salad

In the Saveur Kitchen: Keep clams fresh in a damp towel in a bowl in the fridge; dates stuffed with mascarpone; hot citrusy sangrita chases tequila; how to trim hanger steak; cooking tips from Judy Rodgers; North American black walnuts; the Russell Harrington short Boston 3-inch oyster knife is recommended

Recipes: Salmorejo sauce

Black walnut sauce

Kitchen: Marcella Hazan's kitchen has sliding doors and deep drawers under the sink (place drains at the rear of the sink).

Moment: A Chinatown residents sips soup on a fire escape in NYC, 1998

[zora]

Saveur, October 2004 (10th Anniversary Issue; a shout-out to Penelope Gil on the cover)

First: Colman Andrews looks back at the magazine’s first issue, 10 years ago.

Fare:

Kitchen Radio: Legends like Lou "The Glue" Marcelli are on a 13-part NPR series on Morning Edition beginning October 1. By Peggy Knickerbocker

A Cuppa Kava: Eric Goodman participates in a Fijian kava ceremony, using the traditional herbal sedative.

The Grape Escape: The new movie Sideways, starring Paul Giamatti, is set in Santa Barbara wine country. By Margo True

Bulldog Party: El Bulli began as a beach stand near the French border, with Czech-Swiss owners. By George Semler

Recipe: Magret de Pato Perfumado al Brandy con Trufas y Setas (duck breast in brandy sauce with truffles and mushrooms)

Texas Tartare: The town of Castroville, 25 miles west of San Antonia, has Alsatian roots with a Texan accent: the local steak tartare has chopped onions, american cheese and lemon juice, and is served on saltines. By Paula Disbrowe

Recipe: Castroville Parisa

Béchamel U. Turns 20: Two decades of NYC's French Culinary Institute. By Stephanie Ogozalek

On the Side: high-end ballpark food, though not yet at Yankee Stadium yet (so terribly true), where they're sticking with Cracker Jack—not Crunch 'n Munch; Chefcards are like baseball cards, but chefs are the "players"; Jay-Z has a dedicated chicken-wing chef; Atkins dieter pushes limits of all-you-can-eat buffet

Agenda: Kaikoura Seafest in NZ, dedicated to crustaceans; Erddig apple festival in Wales; Afamia grape fest in Cyprus; Oct. 8 is the anniversary of the Domino sugar trademark (1901); Oct. 12 is Luciano Pavarotti's birthday (1935); West Virginia black walnut fest; Kansas and national cornhusking contests

One Good Bottle: El Chaparral de Vega Sindoa Old Vines Grenache 2002 ($11): "a low-key charmer…very food-friendly."

Book Review: The Breath of a Wok: Unlocking the Secrets of Chinese Wok Cooking Through Recipes and Lore, by Grace Young and Alan Richardson. Madhur Jaffrey reviews, with general praise (and tips from book such as seasoning your wok by frying flat Chinese chives), but wonders if home stoves are powerful enough to develop true "wok hay." {I have a tip: "unscrew the nipple" (scroll down)}

Recipe: Lee Wan Ching's sizzling pepper and salt shrimp

Drink: The New South

The Mâconnais, in southern Burgundy, produces many mediocre wines—and increasing quantities of very good ones. By Patrick Matthews

Tasting notes: From Verget Macon-Villages 2003 ($15; "fresh and clean…ample chardonnay") to Chateau-Fuissé Vieilles Vignes Pouilly-Fuissé 2002 ($50; "creamy, smooth and fruity")

Essay: Authenticity: It's the Real Thing

Colman Andrews says the only way to get close to "authentic" cooking is to know the people behind the tradition.

Cellar: Edgy and Intense

Mourvèdre yields distinctive wines from Bandol to the Sierras to McLaren Vale. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: 12 mourvèdres and mourvèdre blends, from Joseph Swan Russian River Valley Mourvèdre ($16; "camphor and wet earth" to Ridge California Pato Vineyard Mataro 2002 ($N/A; "huge ultra-ripe nose of berry preserves")

Source: Canadian Mennonite farmers make smoky summer sausage. By Shane Mitchell

Classic: Chilaquiles (stale corn tortillas doused in spicy tomato sauce) are a great poor man's dish. By Carolynn Carreño

Recipe: Chilaquiles

Fragrant Feasts of Lucknow: Two centuries ago, the rulers of this refined North Indian city created an aromatic, extravagant cuisine that lives on today. By Margo True

Recipes: Kundan Khaliya (kid goat curry wrapped in gold)

Murgh Zafrani (saffron chicken)

Dhungare Baigan (smoked eggplant with yogurt and onion)

Parcha Pulao (kid goat pilaf cooked in spiced meat stock)

Galawat Kebabs ("melt-in-the-mouth" kid goat kebabs)

Dabi Arvi ka Salan (taro in onion sauce)

Sidebar: Recipe Detectives: local food writers had trouble getting recipes from secretive Lucknow cooks, but now have a book to show for their work: Dastarkhwan-e-Awadh: The Cuisine of Awadh

Sidebar: Garnishes That Glitter: how to work with gold and silver leaf

Guide: hotels, restos, and sights in Lucknow

Singing for Our Supper: When two musicians from Texas go on tour in Europe, good food isn't an afterthought—it's a daily obsession. Country food in Switzerland, France, Spain and Italy, by Joe Gracey

Recipes: Cervéla (Hansreudi's family salad)

Salsiccia Nostrana alla Griglia con Fagioli all-Uccelletto (grilled sausage with white beans)

Almejas con Jamón (steamed clams with ham in white wine) {mmm—from Cal Pep in Barcelona}

Espuma de Limón (lemon foam; also boosted from Cal Pep)

Guide: hotels and great road food in Europe

A Saveur Roundtable: Ten years of cooking and eating in America, 1994–2004: To celebrate our first decade of publication, we invited key food figures from around the country to sit down with us for lunch (we ate both carbs and protein) and explore a menu of meaty topics. By Colman Andrews

The participants: Robert Schueller, Deborah Madison, Zarela Martínez, Mario Batali, Dorothy Kalins, Darrell Corti, Marion Nestle, Rich Melman, Chuck Williams, Mimi Sheraton and Colman Andrews

{No Atkins discussion, despite the ref in the dek. The confab seems heavily edited—very broad comments on an equally broad range of topics. Also, there's a very funny picture of Andrews looking very fierce at the head of the table. Recipes are all from Barbuto, where the lunch took place.}

Recipes: Crostini di Baccalà (salt cod cake on grilled toast)

Insalata di Calamari Gremola & Aioli (salad of squid, wild chicory and chickpeas with lemon-garlic sauce)

Maccheroni con Funghi Selvaticci (tube-shaped pasta with wild mushrooms)

Manzo ai Ferri (grilled skirt steak with grilled chiles)

Cavolfiore (roasted cauliflower with black olives and bread crumbs)

Finocchio e Pecorino (shaved fennel with pecorino)

Torta al Limone (almond-lemon cake)

Sidebar: Ten Years of Food and America: a timeline ranging from the opening of the French Laundry to the death of Julia Child

Sidebar: Puck the Pioneer: Short interview with Wolfgang Puck

Tailgating at Ole Miss: If football can be considered a religion in these parts, then pregame picnics at the Grove are its church suppers – for up to 60,000 people. By Carolyn Carreño

Recipes: Caramel cake

Cream cheese dip with chutney

Black-eyed pea corn bread

Hot onion soufflé

Grilled pork tenderloin with Jezebel sauce

Breakfast casserole

Only the Very Best Meat Tafelspitz isn't just a variety of boiled beef; it's one of the treasures of Viennese gastronomy—indeed, of Viennese culture. By Ann McCarthy

Recipe: Tafelspitz

Sidebar: Boiled Beef Matters: The importance of the cut of meat, as seen in an excerpt from Joseph Wechsberg's story "Tafelspitz for the Hofrat."

In the Saveur Kitchen: A staffer's variation on the Ole Miss breakfast casserole; add smoky flavor to Lucknow dishes with live coals set in onion "cups," then placed in the dish and drizzled with ghee—cover and let smoke; how usli ghee differs from French clarified butter; soup of tafelspitz broth over shredded crepes is a traditional Viennese starter

Recipes: Sue Raye's breakfast casserole {different from the Ole Miss recipe in that it uses cream of mushroom soup!}

Usli Ghee (Indian clarified butter)

Frittatensuppe (shredded crepes in beef broth)

Kitchen: Chef Andrew Abruzzese in Bucks County, Pa., uses two big islands, a walk-in refrigerator, and slate flooring just in front of the stove, fridge and walk-in.

In the Saveur Library: Moghul Cooking: India's Courtly Cuisine, by Joyce Westrip (Serif, 1997): sumptuous, easy-to-follow recipes

Moment: The backs of itinerant grape pickers dot a field in Champagne, 1998

[zora]

I wonder whether editors at food mags get a sick feeling when they start thinking about the Thanksgiving issue? I know my eyes glaze over as soon as I see them in my mailbox. Fortunately, no turkeys were harmed for the cover of this issue.

SaveurSaveur, November 2004

First: In fact, Colman Andrews explains why they never use turkeys on the cover. Heh, but there's a good picture of _live_ turkeys "awaiting the inevitable."

Fare:

Turkey on the Yarra: Nancy Kriplen recalls an unlikely Thanksgiving in Australia, and how she bonded with the in-laws.

Hail to the Chef: White House chef Walter Scheib is also president of a club of chefs who feed dignitaries: "neutrality is a must." By Melanie Mize Renzulli

Prize Pork: Real Canadian bacon is totally different from what Americans think it is (sold raw, unsmoked). Now someone in Michigan is making the right stuff. By Stephen Beaumont

Battle of the Coffee Table Cookbooks: Que es más macho: the El Bulli cookbook or Alain Ducasse's Spoon Cook Book?. A handy comparison chart by eGullet's own Steven A. Shaw

Getting Jiggly With It: A new cookbook is dedicated to Jell-O shots. By Jelly, I mean Kelly Alexander {an honest-to-god typo}

Recipe: Cram (a cranberry/SoCo/citron Jell-O shot)

Tahiti Eats: Food vans in Papeete serve upscale fast food of all kinds. By Meryle Evans

On the Side: napkin-folding craze; Thanksgiving in space; inflation in food prices; bacon-, lettuce- and tomato-scented candles, for the 100th anniversary of the sandwich

Agenda: Mule Day in Calvary Georgia; Fiesta del Dulce de Leche in Cañuelas, Argentina; Swedish goose feast honors Saint Martin, who hid amid a flock of geese; Nov. 12 is the trademark anniversary of Nabisco; Delray Beach Garlic Fest in Florida; Leo Baekelend, inventor of Bakelite, was born Nov. 14, 1863, in Ghent; Mount Avoca Pétanque Club Tournament in Avoca, Australia

One Good Bottle: Geyser Peak Winery Kuimelis Vineyard Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 ($32): "definitive California cabernet."

Book Review: Remembering Bill Neal, by Moreton Neal, and Frank Stitt's Southern Table: Recipes and Gracious Traditions from Highlands Bar and Grill, by Frank Stitt. Shane Mitchell reviews these two Southern cookbooks: both flawed, but good for Neal completists and nice refined dishes from Stitt (though many recipes didn't test well).

Recipes: Chicken Liver Mousse (from Neal)

Red Snapper with Ham Hock?Red Wine Sauce (from Stitt)

Cellar: Argentina's White Hope

Fragrant torrontés looks for a place on America's wine list. By Roger Morris

Tasting notes: 12 torrontés wines?very few are available in the U.S. so far, but all are priced very well: "Crios" de Susana Balbo Cafayate 2003 ("wafts of tangerine?; excellent mouth-feel") is the priciest at $15.

Essay: The Taste of Autumn

Willoughby Johnson praises food, such as a good venison steak, that you hunt yourself.

Lives: Wine Seller

For half a century wine merchant Robert Haas has brought great wines to America. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: Five recommended bottles from Tablas Creek, such as Esprit de Beaucastel 2002 ($40): very elegant, with mourvèdre predominating.

Memories: A Slice of Memory

Kathleen Brennan recounts learning how to make her German granddad's walnut torte

Recipe: Opa's Walnut Torte

Source: Super-fresh Hawaiian fish from Honolulu Fish Company. By Camas Davis

Classic: Negimaki (beef-scallion rolls) were invented in Manhattan. By Laura Kiernan

Recipe: Negimaki

Potato World: Once widely maligned and misunderstood, this humble tuber is now relished almost everywhere. A giant, multipiece feature on potatoes, including info about the International Potato Center in Peru, a bit on the potato famine and profiles of the Simplot potato plant and a small-scale potato farm in Maine. Also: what they look like, how to cook 'em. Contributions from Lynne Sampson, Margo True, Maricel Presilla, Sarah Copeland and Carolynn Carreño {All a relief to see, considering the last issue had a few carb-counting jokes, which made me worry the eds were losing their grip.}

Recipes: Vichyssoise (cold potato and leek soup)

Pommes de Terre à la Sarladaise (Sarlat-style potatoes)

Pizza di Patate (potato pizza)

Filets de Poisson en Écailles Croustillantes (fish filets with potato scales)

German Potato Salad

Hachis Parmentier (shredded beef with mashed potatoes)

Aloo Papri Chaat (crisp-fried wafers with potatoes, yogurt and tamarind chutney)

Llapingachos (Ecuadoran potato cakes)

Vintage Pyrenees: The luminous wines of Jurancon, both dry and sweet, are as unusual and full of personality as the people who make them. By Colman Andrews

Recipes: Daurade Royale sur un Lit de Poivrons Rouges (roasted sea bream on a bed of red peppers)

Foie Frais de Canard Poêle au Shitaké, Julienne de Golden Citronnée (fresh duck liver sautéed with shiitake mushrooms, with a julienne of golden apples)

Poêlé de Ris d'Agneau et de Cèpes (salad of lamb sweetbreads and cèpes)

Pot-au-Feu (boiled beef dinner)

Tasting Notes: 13 recommendations from the region, from Chateau Jolys Sec 2001 ($14; "ripe strawberry nose...austere finish") to Clos Lapeyre Vent Balaguèr ($50/375ml; "rich, creamy and long")

Guide: hotels, restos and wineries to visit in the Pyrenees

Is It Still a Tradition If We Change It Every Year?: Elmer R. Grossman explains the evolution of his family's Thanksgiving dinner.

Recipes: Roast Turkey

Multicultural Stuffing

Rich Gravy

Pear and Currant Chutney

Lemon Marmalade Cranberry Sauce

Pumpkin Pie

Living with the Olive: In the Greek province of Messenia, the annual kalamata harvest dictates the rhythms of a simple existence. By Diane Kochilas {No recipe provided, but fascinating: dried figs poached in salt ater, roasted in embers and sprikled with oregano.}

Recipes: Fava (puree of yellow split peas)

Khirino me Selino kai Avgholimino (pork stewed with celery in egg-lemon sauce)

Fasoladha (bean and vegetable soup)

Kokkoras me Khilopites (rooster with egg noodles)

Kayiannas (tomato and sausage omelette)

Sidebar: Liquid Kalamata: Greek olive oil is tasty and reasonably priced.

In the Saveur Kitchen: A Sveico nut grinder is best, but a Zyliss cheese grater works too; poori and tamarind chutney are staple Indian snacks;

Recipes: Madeira-truffle Butter

Papri (crisp-fried wafers)

Imli Chatni (sweet and spicy tamarind chutney)

Kitchen: Chef Cindy Pawlcyn, in Napa Valley, relies on refrigerated drawers, a made-to-measure pastry counter, a wood-fired oven, built-in wood cutting boards and small windows over counters for cooling pies (and for letting hobos steal them, presumably).

Moment: An English milkman delivers, despite the floods, 1954.

[zora]

Saveur, December 2004

First: Colman Andrews chides us to enjoy the holidays with our family before we regret not doing so.

Fare:

Clay Chicken: Eugenia Bone reminisces about the Italian tradition of baking a chicken in clay; today’s kids like it too.

Recipe: Chicken cooked in clay

Attack of the Hedonistic Fruitbombs: An excerpt from the new book Inspiring Thirst: Vintage Selections from the Kermit Lynch Wine Brochure

Flying Foodies: John Purner specializes in reviewing restaurants at small airports. By Ron Lieber

Mush Rocks: Bonnie Raitt’s band are oatmeal aficionados. By Mary Jo Spiegel

Recipe: Man o' war

Revered Wear: Amateur chef Roger Mummert gets respect when he puts on chef’s whites

On the Side: A pho blog; a Sonoma vineyard uses SF area restos’ table scraps to fertilize its grapes; Pittsburgh’s new Iron City beer is packaged in sleek aluminum bottles; a German-made computer chip sense bad breath.

Agenda: Strong ale fest in Carlsbad, Calif.; Minco, Okla., honey fest; Castelnaudry’s annual goose fat sale; James Lewis Kraft born Dec. 11, 1874; inn-hopping cookie tour in N.H.; mushroom fair in Santa Rosa, Calif.; shimadaame candies are sold in Taiwa Japan to commemorate someone falling in love with a woman’s puffy hairdo (really); patent anniversary of the first commercial dishwasher (1886) on Dec. 28;

One Good Bottle: Casa Noble Anejo ($90): "smooth…vivid" five-year-old tequila

Book Review: Poet of the Appetites: the Lives and Loves of MFK Fisher, by Joan Reardon, is solid; Fried Chicken and Apple Pie, by John T. Edge, are larks; The Tex-Mex Cookbook, by Robb Walsh, is excellent; At Mesa’s Edge, by Eugenia Bone, is a little thin but has good recipes. By Anne Mendelson

Recipes: Lone Pine Pie

Lady Bird Johnson’s Pedernales Chili

Grape of Worth: Colman Andrews praises North American Pinot Noir, by John Winthrop Haeger

Cellar: From the Wood

Aged long in casks, tawny ports are rich, sweet, complex and versatile. By Michael Steinberger

Tasting notes: from Ramos Pinto Superior Tawny ($15) to Warrer’s 1961 Reserve Tawny ($189), and a few others in the $30 range

Lives: Feeding M. Le Président

Danièle Mazet-Delpeuch won over the formidable Francois Mitterand with her earthy French country cooking. By Charles Pierce

Recipe: Chèvre Mariné

Drink: Big Red from Kronendorf

A handful of small producers in one corner of Australia’s Barossa Valley are making some of the world’s most sought-after wines. By Tim Johnston

Tasting notes: 17 shiraz and Rhone-style wines, from Grant Burge Barossa Viens Shiraz 2002 ($13) to Peter Lehman Stonewell 1997 ($75)

Source: Lady M Confections makes exceptionally fine cakes. By Margo True

Classic: Christmas pudding should age for at least a month.

Recipe: Christmas Pudding

A Southern Christmas North of the Mason-Dixon: A family with roots in the South celebrates the season with feasting and friendly arguments in snowy upstate New York. By Shane Mitchell

Recipes: Baked Country Ham

Breakfast Biscuits

Cheese Crackers

Edisto Eggnog

Spicy Creamed Onions

Standing Rib Roast with Bordelaise Sauce

Bourbon Balls

Green Beans Almondine

Gingerbread Cake

Crab Rangoon & Bongo Bongo Soup: The décor was corny and the food was mostly made up, but for a budding food lover, Trader Vic’s was the best place in the world, confesses Colman Andrews

Sidebar: SF-based writer Ernest Beyl reminisces about Vic Bergeron, the man behind Trader Vic’s

Recipes: Crab Rangoon

Suffering Bastard cocktail

Cheese Bings

Stir-fried Baby Bok Choy

Calcutta Chicken Curry

Javanese Sate with Peanut Sauce

Pake Noodles

Bongo Bongo Soup

Sweet Memory: The candied fruits and other confections at Romanengo in Genoa symbolize the city’s glorious past—and locals still line up for them today. By Anya Fernald

Recipes: Meringata (meringues with marrons glacés and whipped cream

Cotognata (quince paste)

Budino di Semolino con Canditi (semolina cake with candied fruit)

Canestrelli (almond paste cookies)

Number One Tempura: This popular Japanese specialty becomes sheer, lacy perfection when prepared by a master: Suzuki Sumifusa, the top chef at Ten-Ichi, a renowned tempura restaurant in Tokyo. By Kenneth Wapner

Sidebar: modern innovations (gasp) on tempura

Recipe: Ten-Ichi Tempura

In the Saveur Kitchen: Step-by-step guide to making a clay chicken…how to use leftover ham…making dulce de leche out of condense milk…how to fold crab Rangoon.…chowchow…Janet Thompson rallies after accidentally dropping her coq au vin sauce down the drain….In the Saveur library: Bitter Almonds: Recollections from a Sicilian Girlhood, by Maria Grammatico and Mary Taylor Simeti, and Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art, by Shizuo Tsuji.

Recipes: Brandy Butter

Whiskey Cream

Macaroni with Cheese and Country Ham

Chowchow

Kitchen: Hiroko Shimbo, a Japanese cookbook author and teacher, relies on a salamander and chopsticks by the stove.

Moment: Chorus-line guys in ostrich-feather tutus have a drink at their theatre bar, 1956

[zora]

Saveur, January/February 2005 (The Saveur 100 issue)

First: Colman Andrews manages to rustle up 100 foodie things to love, and work in the painful pun “beating a dead hors d’oeuvre.” (I guess after he professed his love for Trader Vic’s, he can’t help but show his goofy side.) Oh yeah, and he’s pro-carbs.

Fare:

Pacific Heights: Ernest Bayl reminisces about luxe dining at Cliff House in San Fran (recently renovated).

Recipe: Crab Louis

Steadily Rising: Avalon International Breads helps revive a Detroit neighborhood. By Lynne Meredith Schreiber

Thinking Inside the Box: Carole Braden’s quickie review of Better Than Homemade: Foods That Changed the Way We Eat, by Carolyn Wyman, yields odd food lore.

Fortune Cooking: An exhibit on Chinese restaurants in America, and how that got to be the way they are, at NYC’s Museum of Chinese in the Americas. By Elsa Huang

Chasing Gnafron: Peggy Knickerbocker recalls discovering this sausage flan in Lyon, then makes her own.

Peggy’s Gnafron

On the Side: The Houston Rockets visit Yao Ming’s hometown, and eat well; Cookoff: Recipe Fever in America covers the high-stakes cooking circuit—best grilled cheese: swiss cheese and mango salsa on Italian bread spread with curry butter; Beautiful Brews Company makes beer especially for women.

Agenda: Post cereal anniversary (1895); tamarind fest in northern Thailand; ancient dance and oxtail at Sinulog Foodstreet, Cebu; Soupie (aka sopressata) Bowl in Pa.; Périgord’s birthday, Feb. 2, 1754; Sprengidagur celebrates salty lamb in Iceland; Tasmanian food fest; Red Wine and Chocolate, Yakima Valley, Wash.

One Good Bottle: Jaillance Cuvée Impériale Clairette de Die ($15), a “soft, sweetish confection of a wine.”

Book Review: Dorothy Kalins is very impressed with Tsukiji: The Fish Market at the Center of the World, by Theodore C. Bestor. Very accessible, but with great complex detail on the culture of the market.

Cellar: Here Comes Kiwi Pinot

New Zealanders offer Burgundian aromas and New World flavors. By Michael Steinberger

Tasting notes: 12 NZ Pinot Noirs, from Mud House Vineyard Selection Marlborough 2002 ($17; “aggressive spiciness; finishes tart and dry”) to Felton Road Central Otago 2002 ($43; “bracingly dry…warm red fruit”)

Reporter: Swedish Superstars

Winning Arets Kock, Sweden’s chef-of-the-year contest, can turn a cook into a legend. By Kelly Alexander

Recipe: Hummer med Blomkalskram, Hummergele, och Gurka (cucumber-wrapped croutons with cauliflower mousseline and lobster)

Source: Texan Jim Walters’s Caledonian Kitchen haggis is for a select few. By Janet Forman

Classic: Rich Little Po’ Boy: the New Orleans sandwich. By Pableaux Johnson

Recipe: Oyster Po’ Boy

The Saveur 100: It starts out great, with a lobster-and-calvados stew in a footed cast-iron pot; the accidental theme is cooking over fire. Other highlights: a stovetop smoker, the hot brown open-faced turkey sandwich, those Artisanal cheese plates at Au Bon Pain, and triple-decker PBJ. Oh, plus some highbrow things too. (Only one quibble: those silicone potholders actually suck—they’re clumsy, and they go from not-hot to dangerously hot in a second.)

Recipes: Potted Lobster Stew

Mexican Chocolate Icebox Cookies

Hot Brown

Uovo in Raviolo al Burro Nocciola Tartufato (soft egg yolk–filled ravioli with truffled butter

Pink Grapefruit Marmalade

Lángos (Hungarian fried potato bread)

Upside-Down Meatloaf (from the Best-Of state cookbooks)

Pollo in Casseroula (“Italian trailblazer” Piero Selvaggio’s chicken casserole)

Feijoada de Polvo (octopus stew from Newark’s Ironbound Portuguese nabe)

Vangi Bhath (spiced rice with green peppers and cashews from the Mavalli Tiffin Room in Bangalore)

Croquetas de Pollo (Cuban chicken croquettes)

Puding de Patata (sweet Minorcan potato cake)

Deep-Fried Shiitake Mushrooms (from Maine’s Common Ground Fair)

Grilled Marinated Quail and Sausages (done on a fireplace-top grill)

Smoked Salmon and Dill Quiche

Tagliatelle Souffle (from Pino Luongo)

Spit-Roasted Boneless Leg of Lamb

Cassava Crackers

Insalata di Spaghetti Freddi al Caviale (salad of cold spaghetti with caviar)

Suan Cai Fen Si Tang (Sichuan pickled mustard green soup with bean thread vermicelli)

Pate Brisee Sucree (sweet pastry crust)

Roast Goose (from Zak Pelaccio, with bird from Heritage Foods USA)

French Toast (using Japanese shokupan white bread)

Gratins a l’Ananas et au Citron Vert et son Caramel d’Oranges (gratins of pineapple and lime with orange caramel, from Domaine de Bassibe near Aire-sur-l’Adour

In the Saveur Kitchen: Improving banana cream pie with a good crust…what to do with lobster broth, and extra goose parts…all about mornay sauce.

Recipes: Banana Cream Pie

Lobster Stock

Goose Liver and Apple Toasts

Endives Mornay

In the Saveur Library: Well Preserved: Pickles, Relishes, Jams and Chutneys for the New Cook, by Mary Anne Dragan, takes the fear out of home preserving.

Moment: A vendor of caramelized sugar animals in Chengdu

[zora]

Saveur, March 2005

First: Colman Andrews reminds us that reviewing restaurants isn’t a dream job.

Fare:

Bock to the Country: renewed popularity and expansion of Shiner Bock, by Timothy C. Davis.

Clove Story: The adorable garlic mascot, Ninky, of Kamashishi, Japan.

Recipe: Ninton Boru (fried pork-wrapped garlic)

Trader Vic Memories: Daniel Douglas is one of many readers with stories to tell about the restaurant.

For Starters: Maureen Aboud makes labneh with her grandmother.

Recipe: Labneh (yogurt spread)

History’s Lesser-Known Food Sightings: from a grilled-cheese sandwich showing the Virgin to Paris Hilton on mystery meat… (Funnier than I’m describing it.)

On the Side: Fatties break chairs on the Queen Mary 2, fatties fall for Special K ads in UK, groovy bronze deer faucets, and a nacho-cheese fountain for your next party.

Agenda: Salsa cookoff in Tennessee, John McPhee’s birthday (March 8), mashed-potato wrestling in Pinnaroo, Australia, self-rising flour patented, crayfish fest in South Africa, Taste of Tillamook County fest in Oregon, Iowa Rabbit Festival, Trelawny Yam Festival in Jamaica

One Good Bottle: Bottega Vinaia Teroldego Rotaliano 2002 ($20.50): “wild berries crushed underfoot on the forest floor.”

Book Review: John Thorne thinks On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen, by Harold McGee, is thorough but better as a reference than for any regular use in the kitchen.

Sidebar: Who Will Carve? Carole Braden shows a depiction of the Last Supper in a Cuzco cathedral that features cuy (guinea pig) as the main dish.

Drink: Winemaker on Wheels

Favoring indigenous grap varieties and historic vineyards, Telmo Rodriguez is reinventing wine all over Spain. By Tim Atkin

Tasting notes: 10 Rodriguez wines, from $9 Al Muvedre Tinto Joven 2002 (“greenish tasting”) to $62 “G” Pago La Jara 2002 (“intense and almost mysterious…very tannic….One of the very best of the Toro region”)

Reporter: Diatribes for Dinner

British restaurant critic Jay Rayner explains why reviewing in Britain is no longer a gentleman’s game, with excerpts of the most cutting criticisms from colleagues.

Classic: Super Snack: Margo True reports on Indian samosas; complete with photo illustrations for filling and folding.

Recipe: Aloo Matar ke Samose aur Danya ki Chatni (deep-fried pastries stuffed with spiced potatoes and peas, with cilantro-mint chutney

Source: John and Tracy Johnson make extra-fresh Woodhouse truffles. By Carole Braden

Cellar: A Variety of Styles

Pinot Gris is not a bland grape; it’s just an extremely versatile, adaptable one. By Michael Steinberger

Tasting notes: 12 bottles of pinot gris, from $12 A to Z 2003 (“rapierlike acidity…unmistakably Oregonian”) to King Estate Reserve 2003 ($25; “apples, lime, honey, baking spices and warm stones on the nose”)

Sichuan Street Snacks: Old food traditions find new life at Chengdu’s restaurants and temple fairs. By Fuchsia Dunlop

Recipes: Zhong Shui Jao (Zhong crescent dumplings)

Dan Dan Mian (Dan Dan noodles)

Long Chao Shou (dragon wontons)

Dou Hua (flower bean curd)

Fen Zheng Niu Rou (steamed beef with rice meal)

Hong Shao Bing (sweet potato cakes)

San Da Pao (glutinous rice balls)

Guide: where to stay and eat in Chengdu

The Best Food in the World: Bacon. Duh. By Colman Andrews

Recipes: The Definitive BLT

Bacon Tempura

Peanut Butter and Bacon Truffles

Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing

Billionaire’s Bacon

Stilton and Bacon Cheesecakes

Sidebar: How to Cook Bacon (fry, bake, broil, microwave)

Sidebar: Bacon and Health. Whatever.

Sidbar: Nine Degrees of Bacon: international bacon relatives

Flavors of a Rugged Land: Hunger drove Giuseppe Moretti from Italian Switzerland; food and family drew his great-granddaughter back. By Ann Herold

Recipes: Minestrone (hearty vegetable soup)

Pseci in Carpione (cold marinated fried fish)

Cavollatte (vanilla lemon custard)

Torta di Pane (bread cake)

Capretto Brasato in Vino Bianco (baby goat braised in white wine)

Insalata di Cicoria (chicory salad)

Polenta ai Due Grani (two-grain polenta, with buckwheat)

Asparagi alla Milanese (asparagus with fried eggs and Parmigiano)

Guide: where to stay and eat in Ticino

Lamingtons, Beestings and Meat Pies: Country bakeries are an Australian institution, but they’re a dying breed, and their delights are disappearing. By Chloe Osborne

Recipes: Lamingtons (cakes dipped in chocolate icing and coconut)

Beestings (custard-filled buns)

Sausage Rolls

Aussie Meat Pies

Vanilla Slice

Sidebar: Pie in the Sky: Aussies love meat pies.

In the Saveur Kitchen: Sichuan dipping sauces make the difference…frisee aux lardons is the perfect salad…what to do with bacon grease…faster puff pastry

Recipes: Hong You (Sichuan chile oil)

Hua Jiao Mian (ground roasted Sichuan peppercorns)

Fu Zhi Jiang You (sweet aromatic soy sauce)

Salade Frisee aux Lardons (curly endive salad with garlic croutons and French bacon)

Bacon-Fried Chicken

Quick Puff Pastry

Real-Life Kitchen: artist Jim Richmond’s electricity-free Vermont farmhouse uses a vintage 1920s stove and other found pieces. By Caroline Campion

In the Saveur Library: Lebanese Mountain Cookery, by Mary Laird Hamady, and Encyclopedia of Asian Food, by Charmaine Solomon

Moment: A man and his potbellied pig root through the fridge. (In honor of National Pig Day, March 1, perhaps?)

[zora]

Saveur, April 2005

First: “Cheese is my monkey,” says Colman Andrews.

Fare:

A Family Affair: Cohen’s dishes up kosher in Munich. By Julia M. Klein

Fruit of Dreams: Elizabeth Cawdry Thomas reminisces about cherimoyas.

Vada-pav in the Morning: A Mumbai brek snack is “carb-loading BLISS.” By David Leavitt

Bill’s BBQ Lite: Clinton’s fave joint developed a “lite” menu following the ex-prez’s bypass surgery. Eric O’Keefe interviews the owner of McClard’s in Hot Springs, Ark.

Slices of a Century: Pizza: A Slice of Heaven: The Ultimate Guide and Companion inspires some pizza cartoons.

On the Side: Norwegian soccer star signs for free pizza; world’s largest chicken egg (8-in. circumference) laid in Germany; a gadget for removing sandwich crusts; Jane Seymour promotes pistachios

Agenda: Saint-Georges maple syrup fest; Ramp Tramp Festival in Tenn.; first Jiffy mix sold in 1928; oyster fest in NZ; Great American Pie Fest in that weird Disney town, Celebration; Celtic food fest in Scotland; bison fest in Bryan, Tex.; Alice B. Toklas’s birthday on April 30;

One Good Bottle: Goisot Sant-Bris Fié Gris Corps de Gard Gourmand 2002 ($22): “lemony sauvignon blanc character.”

Book Review: Regina Schrambling reviews La Cocina de Mamá: The Great Home Cooking of Spain, by Penelope Casas, and Lidia’s Family Table, by Lidia Bastianich. As usual, she doesn’t have very much nice to say.

Recipes:

Berenjena con Miel de Julia (Julia’s batter-coated fried eggplant with honey, mint and sesame seeds

Roast Black Olives and Pearl Onions

Drink: Wine from the Fruit Basket

The Pfalz is warm and dry—and the most dynamic vineyard region in Germany today. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: 11 Pfalz wines, mostly from riesling, from $20 A. Christmann 2002 (“subtly flinty flavor, a hint of smoke,…very quaffable”) to Okonomierat Rebholz Siebeldinger im Sonnenschein 2003 ($64; “intense but closed-up fruit”).

Ingredient: Truly a Remarkable Plant

Dandelions are versatile, flavorful and really, really good for you. By Rich Lang

Recipes:

Dandelion Greens with Anchovy Sauce and a Fried Egg

Crème de Pissenlits (cream of dandelion soup)

Essay: The Tao of Biscuits

Kelly Alexander laments her failure at biscuit-baking.

Cellar: Silk and Chocolate

The Alexander Valley’s cab-based wines are smooth and sophisticated. By Roger Morris

Tasting notes: a dozen cabernet sauvignons, from Simi 2002 ($25; “intensely fruity”) to Silver Oak 2000 ($60; “dark cherries, chocolate tannins and earthy terroir”)

Source: Renard’s Cheese specializes in squeaky cheese curds. By Caroline Campion

Classic: Warm Comfort: meat and barley are the mainstays in Scotch broth. By Laura Mason

Recipe: Scotch Broth

American Cheese: A celebration of artisanal delights from our nation’s farms and dairies.

Part One: In Praise of American Cheese. Colman Andrews gives a quick history.

Part Two: The Accidental Pioneer: Laura Chenel leads the way in goat cheese. By Margo True

Part Three: The Ultimate Artisan: Margo True meets the musically inclined Soyoung Scanlan of Santa Rosa, Calif.

Part Four: Our 50 Favorite American Cheeses

Part Five: Where We Go to Buy American Cheese. Signs of a good shop: passionate staff, samples, very busy, cheese cut to order, staff can educate, no mass-produced cheeses.

Part Six: Cheese in the Kitchen: 15 recipes (see below)

Sidebar: Wine and Cheese. It all tastes pretty good, say the editors.

Sidebar: How to Speak Cheese. Kathleen Brennan gives a vocab lesson.

Sidebar: What is Cream Cheese? Caroline Campion says it wasn’t invented in Philly.

Sidebar: Raw Milk and the Law. Laura Werlin sounds surprisingly skeptical of the whole raw cheese thing.

Sidebar: Celebrating Our Nation’s Cheese: assorted cheese festivals. By Camas Davis

Sidebar: Respect Your Cheese: how to store it. By Raymond Hook (“Gray and blue molds that may develop…are fine. Black and red molds should be trimmed off, however.” Good to know.

Recipes:

Crunchy Spring Salad

Chevre with Herbs, Olive Oil and Lemon Zest

Salmon with Spring Vegetables

“Melted” Leeks and Fennel with Olives and Chevre

Lemon Verbena Strawberry Fool

Pungent Cheese Spread

Fresh Goat Cheese Panna Cotta

Mille-Feuille with Two Goat Cheeses

“After Farmers’ Market” Quiche

Fried Mozzarella Sandwiches

Macaroni and Cheese

Cheese Bread

Scallion and Pickled Jalapeno Cheese Crisps

Welsh Rabbit

Cheese “Gelato”

Chopped Sirloin with Blue Cheese Butter

Creamy Potato-Cheese Soup

Craig Claiborne’s Cheesecake

Blue Cheese Dressing

Open-Face Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Fried Cheese

Cheese Souffle Omelette

Baked Chicken with Cheese and Cream Sauce

American Fondue

In the Saveur Kitchen: four ways to cut the cheese; deep-fried cheese curds!; rabbit is versatile; Fondue 101: the chemistry of it; Korean citron marmalade (yujacha); Alison Fong recalls nearly botching the family meal.

Recipes:

Fried Cheese Curds

Smoked Haddock, Welsh Rabbit, Potato Puree and Mustard Cream

Real-Life Kitchen: Tamasin Day-Lewis’s country home retains the traditional hearth and window seats.

In the Saveur Library: The Cheese Plate, Max McCalman’s fantastic book that reads just like he sounds, and Cheese and Fermented Milk Foods, by Frank Kosikowski

Moment: A model perches atop 800 pounds of Wisconsin Swiss, 1948

[zora]

Saveur, May 2005

First: Melissa Hamilton recalls her first visit to the Fulton Fish Market.

Fare:

Blimpy Eternal: Richard Reynolds reveals the secrets of Krazy Jim’s Blimpy Burger in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Spanish Waffles: crisp, handmade barquillos are growing rarer in Spain. By Lisa Abend

Seduced by a Billionaire’s Beluga: Linda Ellerbee reports on Malcolm Forbes’s caviar excesses. (from Take Big Bites: Adventures Around the World and Across the Table)

Land of Litchis: Alia Akkam reports on litchi farming in China.

Recipe: Lai Zi Ngam Pin (litchi duck stir-fry)

Sour Grapes: New documentary Mondovino covers California wine-industry intrigue. By Roger Morris

On the Side: The Burnt Food Museum; monkeys love apple juice, but not as much as pictures of lady monkeys; UK campaigns against Sex on the Beach et al.; man loses sweepstakes, gains candy bars

Agenda: Kolache fest in Prague, Okla.; cashew fest in Belize; Norway Day in San Fran; vineyard fest in Valle de Guadalupe, Mex.; birthday of Thomas Lipton, May 10, 1850; morel fest in Muscoda, Wis.; snails in Catalunya; anniversary of the CIA, May 22, 1946

One Good Bottle: Erasmo Reserva de Caliboro Maule Valley 2001 ($30): “very focused…Chilean bordeaux-style red.”

Our Daily Bread: Daniel Drennan reports that only Beirut’s bakeries stayed open the day after Rafik Hariri’s assassination.

Book Review: Lorraine Alexander looks at three books about honey: Letters from the Hive: An Intimate History of Bees, Honey and Humankind, by Stephen Buchmann with Banning Repplier; Sweetness & Light: The Mysterious History of the Honeybee, by Hattie Ellis; and Robbing the Bees: The Sweet Liquid Gold That Seduced the World, by Holley Bishop.

Recipe: Honey Butter

Drink: Reclaiming Meursault

Dominique Lafon may have been born into one of Burgundy’s royal families, but he has followed his own path to success. By Michael Steinberger

Tasting notes: 8 Lafon wines, from Macon-Chardonnay Clos de la Crochette ($27; “aromatic…with a nice roundness”) to Meursault-Charmes ($110; “nose with … citrus and honey…an elegant weave of flavors”)

Reporter: Lunch Couriers

Nothing Stays the tiffinwallahs of Mumbai from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. By Margo True

Recipe: Patta Gobi aur Gajar I Bhaji (cabbage and carrots with mustard seeds and curry leaves)

Cellar: Cherry Wine

Around the Tuscan hill town of Scansano, sangiovese goes for the fruit. By Colman Andrews

Tasting notes: 12 bottles of morellino, from Vivaio dei Barbi 2001 ($15; “elegant but full-flavored…bitter chocolate and dried cherries) to Le Pupille Poggio Valenta 2001 ($58; “sheer sensual pleasure, faintly gamy in the nose…inky and rich”)

Essay: Freedom of Diet: Warren Schultz recalls starving himself to avoid the draft 35 years ago.

Source: Fire Dancer peanuts are the Best New Snack Nut in the U.S. this year. By Sonja Toulouse

Classic: Kibbeh is a handmade Middle Eastern treat. By Alia Yunis

Recipe: Aqras Kibbeh Maqliyya (fried, stuffed, ground bulgur–meat balls

Buenos Aires Italian: In Argentina’s cosmopolitan capital, pizza and pasta are everyday fare. By Rich Lang

Recipes: Pasta con Estofado (pasta with boiled beef)

Fusilli con Pesto (twisted noodles with herbs, garlic and walnuts)

Milanesa a la Napolitana (panfried breaded beef cutlet with tomato sauce, ham and mozzarella)

Provoleta (grilled aged provolone)

Sorrentinos de Jamon y Queso con Salsa de Pierino o de Scarparo (large ham-and-cheese ravioli with gorgonzola-arugula sauce or tomato-cream sauce)

Tiramisu

Sidebar: the other ethnic eats in Buenos Aires: Spanish, Jewish, British, German, Mid Eastern

Guide: where to stay and eat in Buenos Aires

Fava Fever: All over the world, this ancient legume is a savory symbol of spring: with sections devoted to Catalan, Italian, Greek, Egyptian and Californian uses of the fresh fava. By Colman Andrews, George Semler, Lori Zimring de Mori, Diane Kochilas, Claudia Roden and Carolynn Carreño

Recipes: Insalata di Baccelli e Pecorino (fava and pecorino salad)

Crema de Faves (Catalan cold cream of fava soup)

Favas a la Catalana (favas with blood sausage and bacon)

Zymarika Salata me Koukia (pasta salad with favas)

Anginarokoukia me Derbiye (artichoke and fava stew with lemon sauce)

Ful bi Lahm (Egyptian meat and fava stew)

Braised whole Favas

Fava Puree

Sidebar: how to peel favas

Sea Change: New York’s Fulton Fish Market is moving after 173 years—but not giving up its traditions. By Fred Goodman, with nice black-and-white photos by Richard Press

Recipes: Escabeche of Fresh Sardines

Panfried Softshell Crabs with Garlic-Herb Butter

Hey Mul Pa Jun (seafood pancake)

Stuffed Sole

Poached Black Bass in a Rich Nage

Sidebar: New Yorker writer Joseph Mitchell profiles a fish market worker in the 1940s.

Sidebar: the new Bronx digs are state-of-the-art

Cream Tea Country: In England’s county of Devon, afternoons are sweetened by scones, clotted cream and jam. By Megan Wetherall

Recipes: Scones

Black Currant Jam

Strawberry Jam

Victoria Sponge Cake

Tea Sandwiches

Sidebar: all about bone china

Sidebar: how to brew tea the British way

Sidebar: what constitutes afternoon tea, cream tea and high tea

The Guide: where to stay and eat in Devon

In the Saveur Kitchen: Eric Ripert mixes meat and fish…roast beef and chicken are British kitchen staples…Saveur staff strays from Italian in Buenos Aires, and loves it.

Recipes: Thinly Pounded Yellowfin Tuna, Foie Gras and Toasted Baguette with Chives and Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

Panqueques de Dulce de Leche (Argentine crepes with milk sweet)

Roast Chicken

Roast Beef

Real-Life Kitchen: Swedish minimalists hide everything, keep no pantry: pop-out vent hood, semi-enclosed outdoor room, suspended fireplace. By Kelly Alexander

Correction: guinea pig (cuy) is not served with its “tail intact”; in fact, guinea pigs do not have discernible tails.

Moment: London ladies sip tea from cups (and saucers) in 1908

[zora]

Saveur, June/July 2005

First: Margo True recalls the best mango she's ever had. Plus, new column: The Saveur… list of best (ice cream parlors, in this issue).

Fare:

No Starving Artists: Regina Maksutova is a patron cook of Russian artists in Manhattan. By Emily Kaiser

Recipe: Bazhe (chicken with pecan-walnut sauce)

Crazy for Baba: cake filled with pastry cream and strawberries is another of Napoli's specialties. By Marlena Spieler

Party Tricks with Papa & Coop: Journalist Ernest Beyl recalls the high life with Hemingway and Gary Cooper in 1950s Sun Valley, Id.

: Linda Ellerbee reports on Malcolm Forbes’s caviar excesses. (from Take Big Bites: Adventures Around the World and Across the Table)

The Real Moutarde: Burgundy is getting back to growing mustard. By Christopher Hall

Recipe: La Vinaigrette à la Carotte et Moutarde de Bourgogne (carrot and Burgundy mustard vinaigrette)

Parisa, Part Deux: A reader submits his story about how this Texan raw-beef dish got its name.

On the Side: squirrels trained to eat nuts for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, tie-in candy bar released; Sony investing in smell-emitting TV; no one eats at the World Series of Poker; Yao Ming's parents open resto in Houston

Agenda: Strolling of the Heifers in Vt.; June 9, 1902, first Horn & Hardart automat; red fruit fest in Noyon; Portland Jerk Festival, Jamaica; Shedica Lobster Festival in New Brunswick; Walla Walla sweet onion fest; Jackie O's birthday, July 28, 1929; Gilroy garlic fest;

One Good Bottle: Dry Creek Vineyard Clarksburg Dry Chenin Blanc 2004 ($10): "a delight…waxy aroma and well-defined fruit"

Book Review: Noelle Howey reviews two foodie memoirs: The Language of Baklava, by Diana Abu-Jaber, and Daughter of Heaven, by Leslie Li. Abu-Jaber's recipes are charming; Li's, great for novices.

Recipes: Magical Muhammara

Gee Ma Wot Mein (breakfast noodles)

The Saveur 12: Ice Cream Parlors: Ted Drewe's, Graeter's, and a yummy-looking one in Dearborn…

Cellar: Local Flavor

Indigenous varietals give blends from Friuli a character of their own. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: 12 Friuli "super-whites", from Marcho Felluga Molammata 2003 ($16; "creamy and mouth-coating") to Dut'un Vie di Romans 2001 ($65; "ripe, rich and viscous")

Memories: A Century of Plums

Sonoko Sakai recalls how his grandmother pickled her plums.

Recipes: Yaki Onigiri (grilled rice balls with pickled plums)

Buta no Hireniku no Umedare Yaki (grilled pork loin with pickled plum sauce)

Source: Capogiro Gelato from Philly is distinctly Italian. By Janet Forman

Classic: Seaside Saganaki: Shrimp with feta is a modern Greek specialty with ancient roots. By Diane Kochilas

Recipe: Garides Saganaki (shrimp with feta)

Valencia Rising: This jewel of a city in Spain's fastest-growing region is blossoming—and turning into an essential gastronomic destination. By Colman Andrews

Recipes: All i Pebre (eel and potatoes in garlic and paprika sauce)

Ajo Arriero (salt cod and potato purée)

Arroz Moreno (rice with cuttlefish and vegetables)

Ensalada de Champiñones y Trufas (mushroom and truffle salad)

Clochinas Valencianas (Valencian-style mussels)

Agua de Valencia (gin, rum, and juice cocktail)

Arroz Cremoso de Almejas y Navajas con Carpaccio de Pulpo (creamy rice with clams, razor clams, and octopus carpaccio

Torrijas de Horchata con Helado de Canela y Chufas Caramelizados (horchata-soaked French toast with cinnamon ice cream and caramelized tiger nuts)

Brocheta de Langosta con Lentejas y Crema de Verduras (spiny lobster with lentils and vegetable cream)

Sidebar: Valencia Oranges: The Spanish love their own variety.

The Guide: where to stay, eat and drink in Valencia

Bobal Mando & Cabernet: Valencia has long produced large quantities of wine; now its vintners are going for quality, too—with grapes both imported and indigenous. By Patrick Matthews

Tasting Notes: 15 reds and 2 dessert wines from Valencia, from Coronilla Crianza 2002 ($11; "soft and tasty") to Gutierrez de la Vega Fondillon 1995 ($80/500ml; "chewy, ripe, alcoholic")

Sousaphones and Funnel Cakes: Every summer, the Kutztown Festival draws thousands to the green heart of Pennsylvania for food and fun. By James Oseland

Recipes: Funnel Cakes

Apple Dumplings

Chowchow

Chicken Pot Pie

Shoofly Pie

King of Fruit: From its birthplace on India's northern border, the luscious mango has gone on to captivate the world. By Madhur Jaffrey

Recipes: Aam ki Chatni (mango chutney)

Fish Curry with Semiripe Mango

Mango Kulfi (Indian mango ice cream)

Mango and Queso Blanco Salsa

Goi Xoai Voi Bo (green mango salad with grilled beef)

Sidebar: A Multitude of Mangoes: from Ataulfo to Valencia Pride—photos and brief descriptions of commercial and special varieties

Sidebar: International Mango Festival in Coral Gables, Fla.

Sidebar: Three Fruits in One: how to deal with green, semiripe and ripe mangoes

Lunch chez Lulu: At her Domaine Tempier in Provence, Lulu Peyraud and her cooking have been seducing guests for decades. By Kathleen Brennan

Recipes: Petits Pois Brisées (braised young peas)

Gigot Farci à la Tapenade (leg of lamb stuffed with tapenade)

Soupe de Poisson (fish soup)

Artichauts à la Barigoule (braised artichokes)

Gateaux a Noix (walnut cakes)

Sidebar: Nancy Harmon Jenkins, Jim Harrison, Kermit Lynch and Alice Waters recall meals with with Lulu

Tasting Notes: six Domaine Tempier wines

In the Saveur Kitchen: Nifty leg-of-lamb-on-a-string roasting technique…garlicky Provencal paste…Berkshire pigs produce great loins (by Judy Joo Allen)

Recipes: Gigot à la Ficelle (string-turned roast leg of lamb)

Lulu's Rouille

In the Saveur Library: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/158...7/egulletcom-20]Rick Stein's Complete Seafood and http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/158...1/egulletcom-20]The Great Mango Book, by Allen Susser.

Real-Life Kitchen: An L.A. kitchen reflects owner's experiences, friends: hot-rod paint job on his Wolf range, Ikea drawers fitted with old library pulls, country-store drawers built by Harrison Ford

Moment: Luling Texas Watermelon Thump, 1989. You hit it with your head.

[zora]

Saveur, August/September 2005

First: Margo True tells how a research trip to Nimes was delayed since 2001.

Fare:

Grass Party: You can pull weeds in exchange for dinner at Ute City Farms in Colorado. By Eugenia Bone

Recipe: Succotash Burritos

Cool Fruit: Las Paletas in Nashville sells Mexican-style frozen-fruit pops. By Elaine Glusac

Out of India: Victoria Street Market in Durban, South Africa, is home to specialized spice vendors. By Alex Bhattacharji

In Memoriam: Michael Roberts, West Hollywood chef and master of “weird combinations.” By Colman Andrews

Recipe: Sweet Pea Guacamole

Book ‘Im, Dan-o; He’s Drinking Cold Beer: obscure food laws still on the books in the U.S. By Margaret Loftus

On the Side: the new pope loves beer; Russian astronaut thinks booze in space is a good idea; Smokey Robinson’s frozen dinners; soy burgers and gyross now available at baseball stadiums (gyros do better)

Agenda: Springfield, Ore., filbert festival; Mengen Chefs’ Festival in Turkey; Brigus, Newfoundland, Blueberry Festival; women’s cooking in Pointe-a-Pitre, Guadeloupe; Denis Papin, inventor of the pressure cooker, born Aug. 22, 1647; Buffalo Wing Fest in Buffalo, NY; Oxford Symposium on Food & Cookery; first drive-in resto opens Sept. 15, 1921, Dallas, Tx.

One Good Bottle: Rosenblum Cellars Sonoma County Dry Creek Valley Marsanne 2003 ($19): “opulent…golden….Sheer sensual delight.”

Book Review: Caroline Campion reviews The New English Kitchen: Changing the Way You Shop, Cook and Eat, by Rose Prince, and finds it very satisfying in its use-everything approach, though it may not take with Americans.

Recipes: More Good Things on Toast: goat’s cheeses, cooled scrambled eggs, chicken livers, herring, fried tomatoes

The Saveur 14: British Columbia

Sample the region’s flavors at farms, bakeries, bookstores and restaurants

Cellar: The White Stuff

The “other” chateauneuf-du-pape has considerable charms of its own. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: 12 white chateuneuf bottles, from Clos Saint-Michel 2003 ($25; “bright, rounded and slightly bitter”) to Chateau de Beaucastel ($80; “Full and honeyed on the palate….Very fine.”).

Reporter: Ozark Italian

John T. Edge reports from the Tontitown Grape Festival in Arkansas.

Recipes: Tontitown Salad

Spaghetti with Chicken Gizzard Ragu

Lives: Stephen Beaumont profiles Fritz Maytag, the man behind Anchor Steam beer, Old Potrero Single Malt rye, Junipero gin and Maytag Blue cheese.

Tasting notes: Wine, beer and spirits from Maytag’s ventures: York Creek Vineyards, Anchor beer and Old Potrero whiskey.

Source: Savory palmiers from La Tulipe Desserts in Mount Kisco, NY. By Kathleen Brennan

Classic: Country Fried: “CFS” is Texan-born hybrid hit. By Joe Gracey

Recipe: Chicken Fried Steak

Fiesta in Nimes: When it’s bullfight time in this vibrant city in southern France, a magical Spanish spell is cast upon the streets. By Megan Wetherall

Recipes: Gardianne de Taureau (bull meat braised in red wine)

Pain aux Olives et Lardons (olive and bacon loaf)

Tourte de Brandade (salt cod tart)

Petits Farcis (stuffed tomatoes and summer squash)

Confiture de Figues (fig jam)

The Guide: where to stay and eat and what to do in Nimes

My Nantucket: For Sarah Lydon, summer on the island means berries, beaches and family

Recipes: Smoked Bluefish Pate

Bluefish with Gin and Onions

Gin and Tonic with Mint

Cold Mussel Salad

Mrs. Ramos’s Blueberry Pudding

Blackberry Crisp

The Guide: where to stay and eat and what to do in Nantucket

Deep Roots: The versatile, nutritious peanut is loved around the world—but nowhere more so than in America. By Wendell Brock

Recipes: Peanut Butter Swirl Ice Cream

Cacahuetes Enchilados (chile peanuts)

Gado-Gado (Indonesian vegetable salad with peanut sauce)

Mafé (peanut butter stew)

Sidebar: Oil Options: use refined peanut oil for deep-frying; use unrefined to boost peanut flavor of dishes. By Denise Schulman

Sidebar: Poison Peanuts: allergies are on the rise, perhaps due to a link with vaccinations. By Tess Autrey Bosher

Sidebar: Picking Peanuts: runners account for 80 percent; spanish are small; valencia are from NM, contain three kernels; virginia are largest

The Last Glow of Summer: In Finland in mid-September, warmth, light and warm-weather food are in dwindling supply—but the season has its delicious consolations. By Margo True

Recipes: Keitetty Rapu (crayfish with crown dill)

Paistettu Sorsa (duck braised with juniper berries and apples)

Korvapuusti (cinnamon-cardamom buns)

Munavoi (egg butter)

Karjalan Piirakka (Karelian pastries)

Kuhaa à la Mannerheim (pike perch with horseradish sauce)

In the Saveur Kitchen: fresh peanuts make the best butter (by Denise Schulman); mini-CFS from Houston (by Margo True)

Recipes: Fried Peanuts (use spanish)

Peanut Butter (use runner)

Roasted Peanuts (use virginia)

Ouisie’s Chicken Fried Steak with Pepper Gravy in Biscuits

In the Saveur Library: Peanuts: The Illustrious History of the Goober Pea, by Andrew F. Smith.

Real-Life Kitchen: Maida Heatter’s 50-year-old kitchen has open shelves and lots of space.

Moment: Italian granny rolls out pizza while the kid sleeps.

[zora]

Saveur, October 2005 (The wine issue)

First: Colman Andrews introduces the new cover design. [Yikes! So many words! So country cute!]

Fare:

Food 101: Northwestern Secondary in Stratford, Ontario, runs a café where students learn to cook and run a restaurant business. By David McFarlane

Move Over, Ketchup: The story of Sriracha sauce. (Huh—never noticed it’s made in California!) By Shoshana Goldberg

Jersey Vine: Make Wine With Us is a winemaking club in Jersey City popular with Irish and Italians (it also hosts a pig roast). By Mark Rotella

Recipe: Flip’s Meat Sauce with Pasta (includes meatballs)

Island of Spam: How Spam became so popular in Hawaii. By James Sturz

A Feast from Fire: Bronwyn Dunne attends an Armenian khorovats. By Margaret Loftus

Agenda: Ozark black walnut fest in Alton, Miss.; Mt. Hood Salmon and Mushroom Festival; Chile Pepper Fiesta in Brooklyn; commemmorate the end of witch trials in France at Les Cucurbitades squash fest; Apple Day in Stratford-upon-Avon; Conroe, Tex., Cajun Catfish Festival; 20th anniversary of Union Square Café in NYC, Oct. 21; Oct. 30 is the birthday of Maynard Amerine, who boosted US wine industry after Prohibition

One Good Bottle: Torres Grans Muralles 1998 ($105), from southern Catalonia, “big, dark…a little too aggressively oaked…but intense, delicious”

Book Review: Colman Andrews reviews The Emperor of Wine: The Rise of Robert M. Parker Jr. and the Reign of American Taste, by Elin McCoy, but finds it a decent portrait of a man who inspires conflicting reactions in the wine community. The Botanist and the Vintner: How Wine Was Saved for the World, by Christy Campbell, is an entertaining history of wine in the New World, and the battle against a nasty aphid. Judgment of Paris: California vs. France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting That Revolutionized Wine, by George M. Taber, details another turning point in the Old World/New World transition.

More Grapes of Ralph: Oddbins rep and celebrated illustrator Ralph Steadman’s second collection of wine essays: Untrodden Grapes

The Saveur List: 7 Hotel Restaurants

From Arola in Barcelona to The Tearoom at London’s Clarence Hotel

Kitchenwise: Building Beauty from Stones: cookbook author Lori DeMori built out a Tuscan ruin into a kitchen stocked with essentials like double sinks, a good scale, a waist-level fireplace, and an olive-oil canister. By Kathleen Brennan

(This new column is part of the redesign—the “Real-Life Kitchen” profile usually found in the back is expanded here.)

Cellar: Exciting Red

Syrahs of the Pacific Northwest. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: 12 Washington State syrah bottles, from Covey Run Winery Washington State 2002 ($9; “sweet, straightforward”) to Dunham Cellars Columbia Valley 2001 ($90; “stunningly complex nose…intense, elegant, concentrated and fine”).

Memories: Opinion Stew

In Hopkins County, Texas, folks argue over important things—like squirrel and okra. By Salley Shannon

Recipe: Hopkinds County Stew (“sissified” with chicken and no okra)

Lives: Building Something: Cristiano van Zeller is helping redefine the Douro. By Bruce Schoenfeld

Tasting notes: van Zeller’s wines are hard to find in the U.S. Five are reviewed here; look for C.V. Douro 2003 ($75, “soft and elegant”) or Quinto do Vale D. Maria LBV Unfiltered 1999 ($27.50, “intense and plummy”)

Source: Beth Kimmerle deals in regional retro candy bars: order the Big Tips Candy Collection from www.bigtipscandy.com. By Kathleen Brennan

Classic: Vinegar Stew: The Philippine national dish is garlicky, peppery, and tart. By Amy Besa

Recipe: Adobong Baboy (pork adobo)

Master of the Mosel: Manfred Prüm crafts what may be Germany’s finest Riesling. By Michael Steinberger

Recipes: Matjestartar, Geraucherter Lachs, und Shrimps auf Reibekuchen (herring tartare, smoked salmon, and shrimp on potato pancakes)

Wildschweinkeule (braised wild boar)

Wirsing (sauteed Savoy cabbage)

Ragou vom Hirschkalb (venison stew)

Spätzle (“little sparrow” noodles)

Sidebar: German Wine Terms: The basics

Sidebar: Dining Around the Mosel: restaurant recommendations

Tasting notes: 5 Prüm Rieslings, from Wehlener Kabinett 2003 ($31, “wonderfully rich…but a little flinty around the edges”) to Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese 2003 ($52, “very ripe and concentrated”)

Down East Autumn: Hunting grouse and woodcock in the Maine woods and fields is a family tradition—and a hit-and-miss affair. By George Semler

Recipes: Blueberry Pancakes

Roast Grouse

Baked Beans with Grouse

Grilled Duck Breast on Toast

Lobster Fried in Butter

Mme. Chagny’s Magic Restaurant: A Brittany-born daughter of Beaujolais turns her back on Michelin stars and puts real French country cooking on the table. By Colman Andrews

Recipes: Soupe d’Herbes Potageres (“pot herb” soup)

Escargots en Coquilles au Beurre d’Ail (snails in their shells with garlic butter)

Aperitif Beaujolais (beaujolais, crème de cassis, and sweet framboise liqueur)

Cuissots de Grenouilles, Jeunes Salades aux Fines Herbes (sauteed frogs’ legs with baby greens)

Pigeonneau de Grain Roti, Jus Simple (roast squab in its own juices)

Cassis en Sorbet et Glace Vanille (black currant sorbet with vanilla ice cream)

Mendoza Mountain High: In the lower reaches of the Andes, two wineries are reinventing Argentine wine with intensity and finesse. By Maricel E. Presilla

Recipes: El Arroz con Pollo de Irma (Irma’s chicken and rice)

Las Empanadas de Carne de Matilde (Matilda’s beef empanadas)

Ñoqui con Tuco (potato gnocchi with tomato sauce)

Conejo a la Cazadora (hunter’s-style rabbit)

Humita al Plato (fresh corn tamal)

Cruton de Trucha y Hongos (trout and mushroom bruschetta)

Tasting Notes: 12 wines from the Mendoza region, the best of an uneven selection, from Alamos (The Wines of Catena) Bonarda 2004 ($10, “suggesting black-curranty cabernet with a greenish tinge”) to Nicolas Catena Zapata 2001 ($90, “thick, rich, and extracted…offers plenty to think about”)

The Guide: Where to stay and eat and what to do in Mendoza

In the Saveur Kitchen: plum chutney is the essence of fall in Maine (by Melissa Hamilton); excerpt from Don’t Try This at Home: Culinary Catastrophes from the World’s Greatest Chefs; Filipinos love condiments; Argentines rely on rendered beef fat

Recipes: Plum Chutney

Kamatas at Sawsawan (Philippine chopped tomato sauce)

Pella (rendered beef fat)

Moment: Costumed NYC kids play a Halloween game with apples, 1940

[zora]

Saveur, November 2005

First: Margo True muses on how food creates community and reminds people of home--especially in New Orleans.

Fare:

Gravy Mistress: Lucretia Bingham explains how to make turkey gravy without freaking out.

Recipe: Lucretia's Gravy

Scotch Guide: Philip Hills has just published The Scotch Whiskey Directory. By Sarah Doyle Lacamoire

Summer in a Jar: Pickled peaches smooth over Southern rivalries. By John T. Edge

Recipe: Pickled Peaches

Where London Gets the Bird: The butcher Lidgates supplies Americans with their Thanksgiving turkeys. By Jenny McPhee

Thefts of the Ancients: Thousand-year-old olive trees in Apulia are under threat from fashionable northern Italians who want to buy them for their yards. By Ivar Ekman

Agenda: Kellogg's Apple Jacks trademark registered Nov. 1, 1966; Cracklin' Festival in Port Barre, La.; sweet potato festival in Kurimoto, Japan; pinot noir fest in Martinborough, NZ; Festival of the Mountain Masters, Harlan, Ky.; 3-ton salad tossing in Baguio, Philippines; fowl fest in St-Sever, France; Mark Twain's birthday, Nov. 30, 1835

One Good Bottle: Montes Purple Angel Colchagua Valley 2003 ($42) is a blend of Chile's carmenere grape with a few othersL "dark, thick, spicy, intense...a delicious monster."

Book Review: Shane Mitchell reviews The Philosopher Fish: Sturgeon, Caviar and the Geography of Desire, by Richard Adams Carey, and King of Fish:The Thousand-Year Run of Salmon, by David R. Montgomery. They're not as compelling as Kurlansky's Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World, but give good environmental background and arguments.

Kitchenwise: A Kitchen on the River: a fishing shack converted to a contemporary kitchen, with a pantry with electrical outlets for small appliances; a wine fridge; and a river view. By Kathleen Brennan

Cellar: King Lagrein

Master winemakers from Trentino-Alto Adige are working wonders with this little-known grape. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: 11 Italian lagreins, plus 1 from California: Cantina Bolzano Rosso Vigneti Dolomiti "La Pergola" 2003 ($12; "intense juicy fruit; finishes with...soft tannins and a hint of sweetness"), Abbazia di Novacella Lagrein-Dunkel Riserva "Praepositus" 1999 ($34; "intense nose of toasted nuts and coffee...concentrated and chewy in the mouth"), and Mosby Red Wine "La Seduzione" 2001 ($22; the Californian: "rich, seductive, fruit-sweet....long").

Reporter: Michelin Takes a Bite Out of the Big Apple

Giles Macdonogh reports on Michelin's first assessment of NYC restos: 500 total, in all five boroughs.

Drink: Sweet Renaissance

The amazing wines of Hungary's Tokaj region are overlooked, undervalued and unique. By Patrick Matthews

Tasting notes: 14 tokajis, mostly aszús, from Hétszölö Ancien Domaine Royal Imperial Tokaj Late Harvest 2004 ($16/750ml; "lively and sweet...good grapey, fruity flavor") to Szepsy Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos 1999 ($120/500ml: "rich and eszencia-sweet, with...a complex weave of fruity flavors, from dried figs to orange peel")

Source: MacArthur grant-winner Gary Nabhan is promoting an oregano grown by the Seri Indians of Mexico, available through the Center for Sustainable Environments. By Kathleen Brennan

Classic: The Greater Goo: Few desserts are as irresistible as sticky toffee pudding. By Laurie Werner

Recipe: Sticky Toffee Pudding

Kentucky Home: At William and Rena McClure's, Thanksgiving is a celebration of family, food and a lifetime of self-sufficiency. By Christopher Hirsheimer

Recipes: Thanksgiving Roast Turkey with Corn Bread Dressing

Creamed Corn

Coleslaw

Apple Pie

Pumpkin Pie

An American Cooks in Paris: From the local market to his tiny kitchen off the boulevard Saint-Germain, a top-notch California Chef shows us how to make a perfect lunch. Detailed photos and explanations with the recipes. Alas, some rely on tasty French pork. By Dorothy Kalins

Recipes: Foie Gras Pâté

Wild Mushroom Sauté

Swiss Chard Gratin

Roast Pork with Fennel, Garlic and Herbs

A Good Green Salad

Sidebar: The Connoisseur's Paris: Where to Eat and Shop

My Life with Rice: Mei Chin hated rice and couldn't cook it--very, very bad for a Chinese woman. But she got over it.

Recipes: Xiangchang Xia Chaofan (Chinese sausage and shrimp fried rice)

Ganbel Huasheng Zhou (dried scallop and peanut congee)

Zongzi (sticky rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves)

Guoba Xiefen Maodou (crab and soybean stir-fry over sizzling rice)

Cullen Skink at the Chip: Scotland does have a cuisine, and for more than 30 years, an idiosyncratic restaurant (the Ubiquitous Chip) in Glasgow has been keeping it delicious--and up-to-date. By Colman Andrews

Recipes: Cullen Skink (smoked haddock soup)

Brandade Fried in Beer Batter with Cauliflower Cream

Vegetarian Haggis with Neeps 'n' Tatties

Cod with Chile Oil on a Bed of Clapshot (potatoes mashed with turnips) with Fried Arame (seaweed)

Braised Ox Heart with Riesling-Washed Cabbage and Skirlie Stovies (oatmeal, potatoes and bacon)

Caledonian Oatmeal Ice Cream with Fruit Compote

The Guide: Where to stay and eat in Glasgow

In the Saveur Kitchen: The Ubiquitous Chip makes tuiles in the shape of forks; Vivian Jao sympathized with Mai Chin's rice hatred, and recommends an automatic cooker

Recipes: Fork-Shaped Tuiles

Zhenzhu Rouwan (pearl rice balls, aka porcupine balls)

Moment: Korean housewives make kimchi en masse outside City Hall in Seoul

Edited October 26, 2005 by zora (log)

[zora]

Saveur, December 2005

First: Margo True talks about the difficulty of learning techniques from TV, cookbooks, and magazines--nothing substitutes for the sure hand of a tutor.

Fare:

Ciao, Bue Grasso!: Alan Tardi visits Carru for the Fair of the Fat Ox and a serving of bollito misto.

Secret Garden: The now-defunct Garden Cafeteria on NYC's Lower East Side was the haunt of Jewish journos. By Michelle Golden

Tubular Titan: H. David Dalquist invented the bundt pan for the Minneapolis Hadassah. By Kelly Alexander

Recipe: Lillian Bogas's Harvey Wallbanger Bundt Cake

Agenda: Winter ale fest in Dovercourt, England; Pohutukawa Fest in NZ celebrates kiwi cuisine; wild game dinner in Graham, Tex.; Igls, Austria, does Krampuslaufen for good and bad boys and girls; Le Fave di San Nicola in Pollutri, Italy, thanks Saint Nicolas for saving the town from famine; Jim Harrison, author of The Raw and the Cooked, born Dec. 11, 1937; coffeehouse proclamation in London, Dec. 29, 1675; mochi-pounding gathering in Hawaii

One Good Bottle: Bollinger Special Cuvee ($52) was cheap in the 80s, but still worth seeking out: "dry almost to the point of astringency...hint of warm brioche"

Ubiquitous Sweets: Alisa Weinstein reports on the dazzling varieties of mithai in Pakistan.

Book Review: Five gems from the holiday cookbook wave: Camas Davis reviews Simple Soirees, by Peggy Knickerbocker, full of seasonal menus for dinner parties, plus tips for executing. Vivian Jao reviews Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen, by Elizabeth Andoh, who learned from her Japanese mother-in-law. Margo True praises Suzanne Goin's Sunday Suppers at Lucques: Goin is "a girl obsessed with cooking." Recipes: A Collection for the Modern Cook, by Susan Spungen, sounds dull and finicky but is actually quite reliable and pleasurable, especially for entertaining; reviewed by Caroline Campion. Margo True likens May Bsisu's The Arab Table: Recipes & Culinary Traditions to learning from a chatty immigrant friend; Bsisu draws from all over the Middle East.

The Saveur List: 12 olive oils from surprising places: Tunisia, Texas, Israel, New Zealand, Australia, etc.

Cellar: White Star

Blanc de blancs champagne is excellent and varied. By Michael Steinberger

Tasting notes: 12 bottles, from Jean Milan Speciale NV ($47; "nutmeg, lime, flowers....a vigor bordering on exuberance") to Krug Clos du Mesnil 1992 ($586; "kaleidoscopic nose....Lush and creamy in the mouth....Distinctly nutty on the finish")

Memories: Late-Night Chitlins with Momma

Pig intestines brought Audrey Petty closer to her mother; they also signified Southern black identity in integrated Chicago.

Recipe: Chitlins

Lives: The Lord of Chateau Bel-Air

In one of LA's toniest neighborhoods, a retired aerospace leader has become a full-time vigneron. By Colman Andrews

Source: Hail, Grenache!

Is it time to worship these wines openly, wonders James Stonehill. Join Grateful Palate's Grenache of the Month Club.

Classic: Sour and Spice

The fiery, vinegary Chinese soup makes everything nice

Recipe: Suan La Tang (hot and sour soup)

Caviar, Grandfather Frost, and Fireworks: On New Year's Eve in post-Communist Mosco, the food is abundant and delicious and the parties are raucously joyful. By Catherine Cheremeteff Jones

Recipes: Yaitsa Farshirovanniye Ikroi (caviar-stuffed eggs)

Salat Olivier (Russian-style salad)

Zhulien (mushroom casserole)

Seliodka pod Shuboi (herring "under a fur coat")

Svinina v Kislo-Sladkom Souse (pork stew with dried apricots and prunes)

Khvorost (Russian twig cookies)

The Guide: where to stay and eat in Moscow

The Mother of Mexican Cuisine: A culinary educator and pioneering author, Josefina Velazquez de Leon was the first person to popularize her country's regional foods. By Mauricio Velazquez de Leon

Recipes: Sopa de Fideo (vermicelli soup)

Albondigas en Chipotle (meatballs in chipotle sauce)

Quesadillas Potosinas (San Luis Potosi–style quesadillas)

Chiles en Vinagre (pickled chiles)

Pampano Empapelado (pompano in parchment paper)

Aguacates Tampico (Tampico-style avocados)

The Pleasures of Strudel: Making this buttery, flaky pastry can be almost as much fun, and as addictive, as eating it: detailed instructions and illustrations from Austrian expert Meta Kulnigg. By Margo True

[i cannot resist editorializing here: If you're really interested in making strudel, you must also read Robert Farrar Capon's The Supper of the Lamb, which is a marvelous book that happens to have a highly detailed--not to mention philosophical and entertaining--interlude on strudel-making.]

Recipes: Strudelteig (strudel dough)

Apfelstrudel (apple strudel)

Weichselstrudel (morello cherry strudel)

Sauerkrautstrudel (sauerkraut and bacon strudel)

Milchrahmstrudel (custard strudel)

Sidebar: Vienna's Finest: where to go for the city's best store-bought strudels

Basques on the Range: The Viscayan sheepherders who began settling in Boise, Idaho, more than a century ago brought along their language, their hearty food, and their exuberant sense of hospitality. By Lynne Sampson

Recipes: Basque Red Bean Soup

Epi's Beef Tongue

Rice Pudding

Lamb Txilindron (lamb stew)

Bakailao Koskera (cod in white wine sauce with clams and white asparagus)

The Guide: where to stay and eat and what to do in Boise

In the Saveur Kitchen: Russian cabbage-and-onion pie makes a good afternoon snack; Nancy Lindsay recalls how her dog helped hide a tureen of spilled gravy from guests; chitlins-prep techniques

Recipe: Kulebiaka s Kapustoi (cabbage and onion pie)

Moment: Signore Claus and his donkey take a snack break, Dec. 22, 1959 in Rome

Edited November 29, 2005 by zora (log)

[zora]

Saveur, February 2006

The Saveur 100

First: Colman Andrews reports that Edible Ojai’s inclusion in the Saveur 100 two years ago inspired numerous spinoffs.

Fare:

The Fabulous Baker Boys: Four friends from Belgrade run Pain d’Avignon in Cape Cod. By Amy Wilensky

Family Style: Shelley Pannill Stein praises family cookbooks, especially one she received from her sisters and mother as a wedding present.

Recipe: Detering Ranch Pecans

Sidebar: Making Books: Resources for designing your own family cookbook

Don’t Bogart Those Zonkers, My Friend: Colman Andrews discovers the classic stoner snack is back on the shelves.

What? No Big Gulp? Taiwan’s 7-Eleven stores dish up excellent hot lunches, even Chinese New Year feasts. By Rich Lang

Agenda: Niagara icewine festival; Hershey Co. est. Jan. 15, 1894; Benjamin Franklin born Jan. 17—but what year?; Mendocino crab and wine days; Pies on Parade in Rockland, Me.; Pahimis coffee festival in the Philippines; black truffle fest in Norcia, Italy; Ybor City, Fla., celebrates Cuban heritage;

One Good Bottle: Simsonig Chenin Blanc 2005 ($9), from Stellenbosch, is reminiscent of apricot nectar.

Book Review: Diane Kochilas reviews three new books on Spanish cuisine: Tapas: A Taste of Spain in America, by Jose Andres, The Cuisines of Spain: Exploring Regional Home Cooking, by Teresa Barrenechea, and The New Spanish Table, by Anya von Bremzen. Andres’s book does a good job bringing restaurant cuisine home, while Barrenechea’s tome is a solid, almost scholarly reference. But von Bremzen’s best combines the two trends.

Recipes: Gildas (Basque skewers, from von Bremzen)

Flan (caramel custard, from Barrenechea)

Butifarra amb Mongetes del Ganxet (Catalan pork sausage with white beans, from Andres)

Cellar: Bierzo Rising

Meet some of Spain’s best new red wines. By Roger Morris

Tasting notes: 12 wines from the Bierzo region, from Pago de Valdoneje 2003 ($12; “bright cherry and hemp aromas…a brambly, brulee finish”) to Paixar 2002 ($87; “rich, chalky, and showing a cherry flavor with white pepper underneath”).

Kitchenwise: Mexico in Manhattan: Zarela Martinez designed the floor plan of her kitchen to welcome guests but keep them from getting in the way. Bright colors and painted tiles set the tone.

Memories: Viola, the Souffle!

Dale M. Brown recalls working on the Time-Life Books Foods of the World series between 1968 and 1971.

Recipe: Souffle au Grand Marnier

Classic: Pillows of Bliss: New Mexican sopaipillas are irresistible. By Cheryl J. Foote

Recipe: Sopaipillas (New Mexican beignets)

The Saveur 100: favorite restaurants, food, drink, people, places, and things.

French farm resto La Chassagnette gets the lead; other highlights include NZ pohutukawa honey, Istanbul’s Ciya resto, Ikea food, the book Hungry Planet, fallenfruit.org, and New Orleans. (What’s with those dorky “Fusion Fun” symbols?)

Recipes: South Indian Squid Fry

Beef Tenderloin Fried with Black Pepper Sauce (Singapore Cantonese–style)

Goan Avocado Salad (from Floyd Cardoz at Tabla)

Huevos “Hacienda de Puebla” (eggs with tomatoes, black beans, and poblanos, from Mexico City breakfast spot El Cardenal)

Southern Chopped Salad (from Jim ‘n’ Nick’s Bar-B-Q in Birmingham)

Cranberry Pudding

Perde Pilavi (pilaf “veiled” in a pastry crust, from Ciya)

Parmentier de Porc Confit aux Oignons (“cottage pie” of pork confit with onions, from Le Timbre in Paris)

Ricotta Gnocchi with Spinach, Chanterelles, and Parmigiano-Reggiano (from Alex in the Wynn Las Vegas)

Hoedeopbap (Korean-style raw fish with rice and vegetables)

Fried Duck Eggs

Cheese Popovers (from BLT Steak)

Philly Cheesesteak Spring Roll (from the Four Seasons in Philadelphia)

Gazdag Ember Batyul (Hungarian “rich man’s purses” filled with paprika chicken)

Galletas de Encurtidos (olive tuiles, from El Bohio in La Mancha)

Sawagani (fried Japanese freshwater hard-shell crabs)

Fritada (Ecuadoran fried pork with traditional accompaniments)

Du-Par’s Steak Pot Pie (from Du-Par’s in LA)

Chocolate Pithiviers (from Roast Chicken and Other Stories, by Simon Hopkinson with Lindsey Bareham)

In the Saveur Kitchen: versatile lotus root; best molds for flan; duck eggs.

Recipe: Lotus Root Chips

Moment: a ladies’ picnic lunch on the Baltic, with blinis and vodka

Edited January 28, 2006 by zora (log)

[thegreatdane]

On the Saveur 100, don't overlook page 63, Kakawa Cocoa Beans. Yum. (A shameless plug for my chocolate.)

[zora]

Saveur, March 2006

First: Colman Andrews says, well, duh, of course he’s part Irish.

Fare:

Move Over, Cheesecake: Cake Man Raven of Brooklyn makes a mean red-velvet cake. His customers, some famous, “don’t want no muffins.” By Jaime Joyce

Recipe: Red Velvet Cake

From Obscurity to Kansas State: Food writer Clementine Paddleford’s papers are ready to be examined at Kansas State University. By Kelly Alexander

For Your Delectation: new culinary-themed cinema: Work the Line, perhaps? Or Fatback Mountain? Hmm, no byline on this one.

Vincente Generoso: Cook, writer and character actor Vincente Schiavelli died of lung cancer the day after Christmas 2005. By Colman Andrews.

Mad for Manti: Margo True loves the Turkish dumplings, and visits a manti sweatshop.

Recipe: Manti (Turkish dumplings with yogurt sauce)

Agenda: apple and grape harvest festival in Stanthorpe, Australia; 800-foot-long lunch table in Napier, NZ; Kona brewers fest, Hawaii; In Vino wine fest in Belgrade; Catfish fest in Washington, La.; Forrest Edward Mars born March 21, 1904; Oyster Olympics in Seattle; fugu arrived in the US, March 29, 1989

One Good Bottle: Louis M. Martini Alexander Valley cabernet sauvignon reserve 2001 ($35): rich velvety texture and “the scent of a suede-lined leather cuff link box.”

Book Review: Shane Mitchell reviews the new edition of Paula Wolfert’s The Cooking of Southwest France and loves it—it’s not for anyone look for anything quick or easy, though. A whole section is devoted to cassoulet.

Recipe: Gateau de Cuisse de Poulette aux Pommes de Terre et aux Artichauts

(chicken, potato and artichoke cake)

The Saveur List: 10 chocolates, all American, including that fantastic Recchiuti business. By Sierra Burnett

Kitchenwise: California transplants to the Hudson River Valley install a waist-high fireplace, inspired by The Magic of Fire, by William Rubel.

Cellar: Lean Vintages

The wines of the East Coast have…well, possibilities. By Michael Steinberger

Tasting notes: 12 wines from Pa., Conn., R.I., N.J., and Mass., from Sakonnet Vineyards (R.I.) Vidal Blanc 2004 ($11; “lean and taut in the mouth….Quite nice.”) to Chaddsford Winery (Pa.) Merican 2001 ($40; unusual Bordeaux blend with “sweet tobacco…cherry, mint, and tree bark….A little too spicy…”)

Source: Rising C Ranches delivers super-ripe, specialty citrus. By Kathleen Brennan

Classic: Burnt OfferingL “Cajun” blackened redfish is a deliciously charred treat. By Pableaux Johnson

Recipe: Blackened Redfish

Ireland from Farm to Fork

Salmon, lamb, and farmhouse cheese; innovative chefs; one of the world’s great cooking schools; delicate whiskey and hearty ale… If you’ve got an appetite, the Irish are ready for you. By Colman Andrews

Recipes: Irish Stew

Colcannon

Lamb’s Liver with Whiskey and Cream

Fried Cooleeney Cheese with Beet Salad

Special sections:

County Cork: Food Capital: Its population of individualistic food-loving artisan-entrepreneurs and chefs has made this big, rich southern Irish county a gastronomic mecca.

Recipes: Nettle Soup

Spinach, Red Onion, and Coolea Cheese Tartlets with Parsley-Walnut Pesto and Olive-Crushed Potatoes

Corned Beef with Parsley Sauce, Champ, Mashed Carrots and Parsnips, and Broccoli

Panfried Sole with Garlic Butter

Seaweed and Cheese: Maja Binder and Olivier Beaujouon forage for seaweed and handcraft cheese.

Recipe: Carrageen Lemon Pots

Heart and Hearth: “Ballymaloe” is the magic word in Irish food today—the name of both Ireland’s most influential restaurant and its finest cooking school.

Recipes: Doris Grant’s Brown Bread

Hot Buttered Lobster

Ireland’s Perfect Condiment: The incredible richness and special character of Irish butter.

A Kid from the Country: One of Galway’s great culinary assets is chef turned writer Gerry Galvin, who has been called the father of Ireland’s traditional-cooking revival.

Recipes: Mussel and Oyster Hot Pot

Tipsy Puddings with Mulled Wine

Sidebar: Reinventing the Butcher Shop: James McGeough does a “prosciutto” of lamb

The Chef and His Material: At Chapter One, Ross Lewis turns the best Irish products into food both refined and homey

Recipes: Cauliflower Soup with Potato Emulsion and Crozier Blue Cheese

Rhubarb Financiers with Vanilla Ice Cream and Poached Rhubarb

Turnip and Brown Bread Soup

Sidebar: Taking Ireland Organic: a slow process, introduced by foreigners

Sidebar: The Wine of the Country: stout and whiskey

Sidebar: Otto Kunze of Otto’s Creative Catering is a farmer-restaurateur

The Guide: where to stay and eat in Ireland

Calypso, Sequins, and Spice

Driven by rhythm and fed by roti, pelau, and curried pork, all of Trinidad turns out for Carnival. By Lucretia Bingham

Recipes: Geera Pork (curried pork)

Buss-Up-Shut (griddle-cooked flatbread)

Goat Curry

Chadon Benny Sauce (culantro sauce)

Chicken Pelau

Sidebar: Party Music: all about calypso

The Guide: where to stay and eat and what to do in Trinidad

In the Saveur Kitchen: the difference between colcannon and champ, and what to do with leftovers; easy home bread the Irish way; details on culantro (Eryngium foetidum), by Sarah Breckenridge; Trinidadian kucheela blows char away, by James Osland

Recipe: Colcannon Cakes

Pint-Glass Bread

Mango Kucheela (shredded mango pickle)

In the Saveur Library: Callaloo, Calypso & Carnival, by Dave DeWitt and Mary Jane Wilan, gives geography and history along with recipes; Myrtle Allen’s Cooking at Ballymaloe House, by Myrtle Allen (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2000), is loyal to Irish tradition.

Moment: two women enjoy sandwiches while waiting under the hairdryers in 1965 South Carolina

Edited March 1, 2006 by zora (log)

[zora]

Saveur, April 2006

First: James Oseland praises old-school French restaurants, where he learned to eat like a grown-up.

Fare:

Campus Chow: Food carts near college campuses serve everything from bulgogi to “poor man’s pizza.” By JJ Goode

Spiny Wonder: Prickly-pear paddles are essential to Mexican cuisine, and they’re not impossible to prepare at home. By Jennifer Acosta Scott

Recipe: Nopales Salad with Jalapeño Dressing

Googledy-Gook: Colman Andrews feeds foreign recipes through the insta-translator. Hilarity ensues.

Pacific Paella: A bizarre restaurant in Tonga conjures Spain, sort of. By Belle Caseres

Cholesterol Special: how to make Uncle John’s easter pizza rustica. By Marc Vassallo

Recipe: Pizza Rustica

Agenda: Lamb Cook-Off in Vail, Colo, April 5; National Grits Festival in Warwick, Ga., April 8; Viernes Santo / Good Friday in Cuzco, Peru, April 14; anniversary of the Dagwood Sandwich, April 16, 1936; Sugar Festival in Clewiston, Fla., April 22; SAgra del Carciofo Romanesco, roman artichoke fest in Ladispoli, Italy, April 21–23; Justin “I gar-on-tee” Wilson born April 24, 1914; La Fete de la Coquille St-Jacques, St-Quay-Portrieux, France April 29–30

One Good Bottle: Ahcaval Ferrer Quimera 2003 ($38), a malbec blend that’s “luscious with opulently rounded fruit”

Book Review: Kelly Alexander reviews the new edition of Paula Wolfert’s The Jewish Kitchen, by Clarissa Hyman and Peter Cassidy: a good effort at a near-impossible task, with some imprecision and odd shifts in tone. Buy it for the stories as much as for the recipes. On a side note: Matzoh Ball Gumbo: Culinary Tales of the Jewish South, by Cohen Ferris, is an excellent study.

Recipe: Jennifer Hyman’s Beet Jam

Kitchenwise: Fiona and Gordon Hamersley redid their kitchen after 11 years: two sinks, all utensils hung on S-hooks, and soapstone counters. By Kathleen Brennan

Cellar: Swashbuckler

Madiran is the dark, spicy, tannic expression of the French southwest. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: 10 madirans from France, plus two tannat-based bottles, one from Uruguay and one from California: Chateau de Perron 2001 ($13) is “fruit-sweet on the palate, with a blackberry and graphite core,” while Chateau Montus Cuvée Prestige 2002 ($60) has “nutty highlights, leading to bright grape-cherry flavors with hints of citrus peel”

Memories: Jean Freas reminisces about her life with sculptor David Smith, who always carried a head of garlic in his breast pocket, and the remarkable meals he used to cook for her.

Drink: Campbeltown Original

In Scotland’s “other” whisky region, Springbank does everything its own way. By Colman Andrews

Source: Destino alfajores recreate the dulce de leche richness of this South American classic. Order from Gump’s San Francisco. By Kathleen Brennan

Classic: Wings of Desire: Spicy and addictive, Buffalo wings are serious business in their hometown. By Denise Mickelsen

Recipe: Buffalo Wings

The Flavors of Home

At the trattorias of Florence, locals and visitors alike eat simply, heartily, and extremely well. By Lori Zimring de Mori

Recipes: Arista di Maiale (roasted herb-stuffed pork loin)

Fagioli Sgranati (white beans with sage)

Piselli Freschi (fresh peas with prosciutto)

Pappa al Pomodoro (bread and tomato soup)

Insalata di Trippa (cold tripe salad)

Pappardelle all’Anatra (broad noodles with duck sauce)

Fritto Misto di Coniglio e Verdure (fried rabbit and vegetables)

The Guide: where to stay and eat and what to do in Florence

The World of Hummus

From cafes in Jericho to suburban party platters, the alchemic mixture of chickpeas, lemon juice, sesame paste, and garlic is a savory staple. By Alia Yunis

Recipes: Hummus bi Tahini (hummus with sesame paste)

Hummus ma Lahma (hummus with ground beef)

Black Bean Hummus

Masbaha (hummus with whole chickpeas)

Vive le Restaurant

Manhattan’s Le Veau d’Or is an unapologetic reminder of the day when fine dining meant wine sauces and white gloves. By James Villas

Recipes: Poussins en Cocotte “Bonne Femme” (poussins with bacon and mushroom sauce)

Celeri Remouldade (celeriac salad)

Escalopines de Veau (veal scallops with lemon-parsley sauce)

Tripes a la Mode de Caen (stewed tripe with calvados)

Oeufs a la Neige (floating island)

Sidebar: Keepers of the Flame: some other throwback French restaurants in NYC. By Sarah DiGregorio

The End of Smorrebrod?

The traditional Danish feast of “buttered bread” sandwiches—which are in fac hearty, varied knife-and-fork extravaganzas—is an endangered culinary tradition. By Regina Schrambling [whose knack for the negative is still strong]

Recipes: Roget al Smorrebrod (smoked eel smorrebrod)

Sommer Kartoffel Smorrebrod (summer potato smorrebrod)

Rejer og Aeg Smorrebrod (shrimp and egg smorrebrod)

Princess Alexandra Smorrebrod (salmon and wasabi cream cheese smorrebrod)

Gravad Helleflynder (fennel-cured halibut)

Gravad Helleflynder Smorrebrod (fennel-cured halibut smorrebrod)

Roastbeef Smorrebrod med Remoulade (roast beef smorrebrod with remoulade sauce)

Ansjos Smorrebrod (anchovy smorrebrod)

Th Guide: where to stay and eat and what to do in Copenhagen

In the Saveur Kitchen: pickled turnips are a standard Middle Eastern side; homemade pita is easy; rabbit stock uses up the bits from fritto misto

Recipes: Lifit (pickled turnips)

Khubz ’aadi (pita bread)

Rabbit Stock

Moment: stilt-wearing street performers snack on the Ramblas in Barcelona

[zora]

Saveur, May 2006

First: James Oseland loves lemons, especially the Meyers.

Fare:

Corn Tapas, Anyone? Lisa Abend reports on Spaniards’, especially Asturians’, adoption of corn in cuisine.

Act I: Cue Fork: The Grid Iron Theatre Company does food-based productions. By Evan Rail

Recipe: Revuelto de Cebolla y Cabrales Sobre Tortos Crujiente de Maiz (corn cakes with eggs scrambled with onions and cabrales)

Jersey Pride: Trenton’s hometown hero is hickory-smoked “pork roll” sausage. By Rick Nichols

Funky Fish: Sushi’s ancestor, funa-zushi, is a fermented delicacy. By Hiroko Shimbo

Pass the Shredded Wheat Pilaf, Please: Breakfast cereal recipes collected in The Breakfast Cereal Gourmet, by David Hoffman. By Kate Fox

Recipe: Roasted Poblano Meat Loaf

Agenda: Asparagus Festival in Schwetzingen, Germany, on May 6; Festival of San Isidro May 10–20 in Madrid; Seattle Cheese Festivel May 13–14; Hadong Mountain Dew Tea Festival in Korea, May 18–21; Mike’s Festival, celebrating a headless chicken, in Fruita, Colo., May 19–20; anniversary of H.M.S. Salisbury scurvy test, May 20, 1747; Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit born May 24, 1686, in Gdansk; Kodiak Crab Festival May 25–29 in Alaska

One Good Bottle: Shenandoah Vineyards Rezerve Barbera 2003 ($24): “big, brawling and manly….”

Book Review: Margo True reviews Mangoes & Curry Leaves: Culinary Travels Through the Great Subcontinent, by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid, and finds it engagingly written and informative, with adventurous recipes, if occasionally confusing in its use of photos and first-person narrative.

Recipe: Shallot Sambhar

The Saveur List: 7 Doughnut Shops. By John T. Edge

Kitchenwise: The Simple Life: Deborah Madison’s tiny kitchen in Galisteo, N.M., is brightly colored and open to the seating area. By Kathleen Brennan

Cellar: Out of the Damp

Albariño, from lush, green Galicia, is a savory, acidic and sometimes very serious wine. By John Winthrop Haeger

Tasting notes: 12 albariños/alvarinhos from Spain, Portugal and California, from Condes de Albarei 2004 ($15; “intense, soft, polished, persistently peachy”) to Havens Carneros Napa Valley Albariño 2005 ($24; “very tight, intense, masculine and mineral rich, with a dry, grippy finish”).

Source: Come and Take It is a classic Lone Star cocktail mix. By Kathleen Brennan

Reporter: A Corsican Passion: An annual competition honors the French island’s traditional cheese makers. By Marie-Pascale Lescot

Classic: Mediterranean Roll: Dolmades are a Greek taverna standby. By Diane Kochilas

Recipe: Dolmades (grape leaves stuffed with rice and raisins)

North Island Bounty: The Matakana farmers’ market, in New Zealand’s northern reaches, is a treasury of fresh, flavorful foodstuffs—and a reminder to locals of just how lucky they are. By Caroline Campion

Recipes: Macadamia-Crusted Lamb with Honeygar Reduction

Green Bean and Radish Salad

Muesli

Cockle Fritters with Aioli

Blueberry Brioche

Zucchini Tart with Feta

Sidebar: Kiwi Queen Bee: BeesOnline is a resto, shop and honey production center in Waimauku

The Guide: Where to stay and eat and what to do in Matakana

Land of Lemons: The citrus groves of Italy’s Sorrento Peninsula produce an intensely aromatic fruit that’s at the heart of many of the region’s favorite foods. By Lorraine Alexander

Recipes: Insalata di Limoni e Buccia di Arancia (lemon salad with orange zest)

Pollo al Limone (grilled chicken with lemon leaves)

Limoncello (lemon liqueur)

Risotto al Limone (lemon risotto)

Concerto di Sapori e Profumi al Limone (lemon custard with dried lemon slices and lemon fritters)

Mozzarella al Limone (mozzarella grilled with lemon leaves)

Sidebar: Where to stay and eat and what to do in the Sorrento Peninsula and Capri

Pork Chops in Paradise: Honolulu’s Side Street Inn plays host to some of Oahu’s greatest chefs—and some of its best meals. By Shane Mitchell

Recipes: Side Mui (cocktail)

Lilikoi Baby Back Ribs

Fried Rice

Furikake-Crusted Ahi with Spicy Mustard Drizzle

Macaroni Salad

Panfried Pork Chops

Pocho Clams

Mackerel Punts and Pilchards: Fishing is a way of life in the village port of Newlyn, on Cornwall’s rocky coast. By Megan Wetherall

Recipes: Fish Cakes

Crab Sandwiches

Saffron Buns

Cornish Pasties

Fish Pie

The Guide: Where to stay and eat and what to do in Newlyn

In the Saveur Kitchen: versatile NZ corn relish goes in toast; all about lemon leaves; li hing mui is ground from dried plum flavored with salt, licorice and saccharine

Recipe: Corn Relish

Moment: cowboy extras, and Iron Eyes Cody, take a lunch break at the Universal Studios commissary

[cigalechanta]

I hope it is ok to post this here.

The June American Sauveur has voted Rabenal of the L'Atelier in Arles as best chef in the world.

http://tinyurl.com/qtjjp

[zora]

Saveur, June/July 2006

First: Colman Andrews recounts how the Saveur staff could turn on a dime to get the story about Philippe Rochat into the issue at the last minute.

Fare:

Rule, Brittania!: Brittania & Co., a timeless Irani lunch cafe, has served Parsi food to Mumbai workers since 1923. By Melanie Mize Renzulli

Recipe: Sali Chicken (chicken stew with potato sticks)

Curious Cutlery: A new exhibition of American tableware at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum goes way beyond the knife and fork. By Darra Goldstein

Dueling Interns: Saveur imagines its own cutthroat reality TV show, in which its interns must not be vegetarians, and must know how to pronounce the name of the magazine.

Nothing Personal, Trigger: Amy Standen reports on the use of horsemeat in Slovenia.

Camelot’s Napery: Napkins with a Twist: Fabulous Folds with Flair for Every Occasion shows how to set the table a la Jackie Kennedy.

Agenda: Okmulgee Pecan Festival, in Okla., June 1-3; Rosy Rhubarb Festival in Shedden, Ont., June 9-11; Midsommar Festival in Stromsburg, “the Swede capital of Nebraska,” June 16-18; World Stinging Nettle Eating Championships in Marshwood Vale, England, June 17; 100th anniversary of the Food and Drugs Act, June 30; Percy Spencer, inventor of the microwave, born July 19, 1894; Le Championnat du Monde de Cracher de Noyaux de Pruneaux, a prune-pit-spitting contest in Sainte Livrade-sur-Lot, France, July 29; Oxnard Salsa Festival, July 29–30;

One Good Bottle: Domaine Stephane Aladame Montagny Les Coeres 2003 ($25): “an unusual spicy nose”

Book Review: Warren Shultz reviews two books on the politics of food: Jay Weinstein’s The Ethical Gourmet is relatively informative and balanced. Fields of Plenty: A Farmer’s Journey in Search of Real Food and the People Who Grow It, by Michael Ableman, is more black-and-white, but inspirational.

Recipe: Multigrain Buttermilk Waffles with Poppy Seeds

Kitchenwise: Kitchen designer Joanne Hudson’s own space has a 15-foot-long island. Traffic flow is maintained with ample space between cooking and cleanup areas, and a separate “drink station.” By Kathleen Brennan

Cellar: White Rock

Chenin blanc, formerly known as steen in South Africa, might turn out to be that country’s new star wine. By Michael Steinberger

Tasting notes: 12 chenin blancs from South Africa, from Ken Forrester Petit Chenin 2005 ($10; “restrained, elegant nose....plush on the palate”) to De Trafford Straw Wine 2003 ($45/375ml; “honeysuckle dominates the nose....with terrific cirus, apricot and butterscotch flavors”)

Essay: The Joy of Salad

Kelly Alexander expounds on the complexities of summer salads.

Reporter: Deeper into Sherbet

In a story that smacks more of Cook’s Illustrated, Elmer R. Grossman praises sherbet and develops his own ideal recipe.

Recipe: Mango Sherbet

Drink: Chardonnay Royalty

From modest beginnings came “America’s greatest white wine estate.” By John Winthrop Haeger

Source: Chris Hogue, of Bethesda, Md., makes the ultimate crab cakes. Order from www.chrismarketplace.com. By Kathleen Brennan

Classic: Cool Potatos

French-sounding vichysoisse is as American as apple pie. By Todd Coleman

Recipe: Vichysoisse (creamy chilled potato and leek soup)

Scottish Summer Berries

A childhood spent on farms near Dundee and in Mum’s kitchen left a London chef with a taste for fruit tarts, shortcakes, and other seasonal delights. By Jeremy Lee

Recipes: Raspberry Shortcakes

Strawberry and Hazelnut Meringue Cake

Berry Jelly

Raspberry Brulee

Raspberry Trifle

Swiss Hit

In a once legendary restaurant near Lausanne, Philippe Rochat has become quite possibly the greatest chef you’ve never heard of. By Colman Andrews

Recipes: Grosses Asperges Vertes a l’Oscietre (asparagus with osetra caviar)

Tarte Fine Croustillante de Morilles aux Fevettes (morel tarts with baby fava beans)

Hatelet de Ris de Veau Roti au Pimento del Piquillos (roasted sweetbreads on a skewer with piquillo pepper sauce)

Rosace de Fraises (strawberry “rose”)

Sidebar: Your Three-Star Kitchen: Why is it useful to print such ridiculously complicated recipes? So home cooks can steal ideas and flavors.

Nutmeg Islands

Indionesia’s tiny Banda archipelago is home to one of the world’s most revered spices—and one of its most lavishly seasoned cuisines. By James Oseland

Recipes: Kare Ikan (fish curry with potatoes)

Nasi Kuning (festive yellow rice)

Teh Halia (spice ginger–palm sugar drink)

Spekkuk Bumbu (Indonesian spice cake)

Sasatay (Banda-style tuna falafel)

Ikan Bumbu Rujak (spice-braised tuna)

Kacang Panjang Kecap (long beans with sweet soy sauce)

Sidebar: The Spice Islands Pantry: ten essentials, from tirassi (dried shrimp paste) to pala (nutmeg)

Sidebar: Banda’s Amazing Spice: all about nutmeg

The Guide: where to stay in the Banda Islands

The Sacred Feast

Food and music feed the soul at this annual celebration in rural Alabama. By Kathryn Eastburn

Recipes:

Fresh Peach Ice Cream

Pulled Pork Barbecue

Poor Man’s Caviar

Sweet Potato Cobbler

Sandy’s Baked Beans

Refrigerator Rolls

Fruit Punch

In the Saveur Kitchen: take fried shallots out of oil a bit sooner than you think; how to beat egg whites perfectly; all about citric acid—which can even be used to make “lemonade”

Recipes: Bawang Gorneg (fried shallots)

In the Saveur Library: Tropical Herbs & Spices, by Wendy Hutton, is an excellent guide to exotic flavors.

Moment: American bicyclists in the Tour de France framed by grapes.

[zora]

Saveur, September 2006

First: Colman Andrews explains why it took so long for the mag to cover Turkey: just trying to get it right. Notably, he realizes it's a country to do numerous articles on, like France, Italy, and China.

Fare:

Small and Savory: The Östermalms food hall in Stockholm reveals many wonders. By Kelly Alexander

Boys in the Kitchen: Tim Allis recounts a gay men's cooking class: it can bring partners together.

Good Nose: Training a dog to sniff out TCA, the contaminant that causes corking. By Emily Kaiser

That Tart: The frequently requested recipe from May 2006's New Zealand story.

Recipe: Portuguese Custard Tarts

From the Spice Islands: Saveur executive editor James Oseland's new book is Cradle of Flavor: Home Cooking from the Spice Islands of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. By Colman Andrews

Recipe: Chicken Satay

Not That Kind of Acid: Summery blackberry syrup is worth the trouble. By Shane Mitchell

Recipe: Blackberry Acid

Agenda: La Fete de L'ail Rose in Lautrec, France, Aug. 4; Alfestival in Ahus, Sweden, celebrates silver eels Aug. 5; Huckleberry Festival in Swan Lake, Mont., Aug. 12; Lewis and Clark Festival in Yankton, S. Dak., celebrates buffalo Aug. 26-27; Marion Popcorn Festival in Marion, Ohio, Sept. 7-9; Pizzafest in Naples, Italy, Sept. 7-17; hand-cranked ice cream maker patent issued Sept. 9, 1843; John "Johnny Appleseed" Chapman born Sept. 26, 1774

One Good Bottle: Albert Mann Auxerrois Vieilles Vignes 2004 ($19) is "delicious…a little oily and just acidic enough."

Book Review: Shane Mitchell reviews Bill Buford’s Heat: An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany and sees it as a romance about big men with big appetites, not really a study of Italian food.

Kitchenwise: Manhattan restaurateur Michael Bonadies redesigned his small kitchen in New Jersey for maximum efficiency: drawers in the kick space, an easy-to-reach garbage can, and lots of lighting.

Cellar: Cabernet Mountain

After phylloxera, Prohibition, and neglect, one of the Napa Valley's least accessible wine areas is now thriving. By Roger Morris

Tasting notes: 12 wines from the Spring Mountain regions, from Terra Valentine Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 ($35, "lively fragrances…deep and rich") to Juslyn Vineyards Proprietary Red 2002 ($90, a blend with "a lovely floral oak nose, very ripe blackberry fruit, and firm tannins").

Reporter: The Importance of Corn: An innovative gardening program in northern Arizona is helping the Navajo rediscover the foods that have nourished them. By Stephanie Woodard

Memories: Are You Being Served? Indrani Sen recalls the surprising relationship with the servants in her grandmother's kitchen in India.

Recipe: Khichuri (dal, rice, and vegetable porridge)

Source: Scottish Gourmet imports delicately sweet Scottish langoustines. By Kathleen Brennan

Classic: Crisp Charisma: Sicilian "tubes" are America's favorite Italian pastry. By Eugenia Bone

Recipe: Cannoli

Pacific Treasure

Vancouver Island is emerging as the West Coast's new epicurean mecca. By Max Alexander

Recipes: Whole Wheat Crostini with Creamed Chanterelles

Grilled Oysters Wrapped in Alaria Seaweed

Salmon Glazed with Rosemary- and Lemon-Infused Honey

Sooke Harbour House Duck with Duck Jus and Green Beans

Polenta Fries with Spicy Garlic Dipping Sauce

Water Buffalo Yogurt Panna Cotta with Raspberry Puree

Sidebar: Island Wines: Blue Grouse 2003 (pinot gris), Venturi-Schulze 2002 Indigo (schonburger), plus some pinot noirs and viogniers.

The Guide: Where to stay and eat and what to do on Vancouver Island

A Tale of Tofu

In Zhangguying, Chicna, this versatile ingredient is the soul of local cooking. By Fuchsia Dunlop

Recipes: Xiang Gan Zi Chao La Rou (stir-fried smoky bacon with smoked tofu)

Jia Chang Dou Fu (Hunanese home-style tofu)

Fu Ru Jiao Si Chao Tan Cai (water spinach with garlic and fermented tofu)

Zhangguying You Dou Fu (Zhangguying-style braised fried tofu)

Fu Zhu Pai Gu Tang (spareribs and dried tofu stick soup)

Sidebar: A Guide to Chinese Tofu: dried tofu sticks (fu zhu), firm tofu (dou fu), smoked (la dou fu, la gan zi), flavored (lu dou fu, dou fu gan), fermented (mei dou fu, dou fu ru), silken (sui dou fu), and deep-fried (you dou fu, dou pao)

Seaweed and Cheese: Maja Binder and Olivier Beaujouon forage for seaweed and handcraft cheese.

Recipe: Carrageen Lemon Pots

The Turkish Teacher

In the ancient city of Konya, Nevin Halici brings together the rich and spiritual foods of her native land. By Margo True

Recipes: Gül Yaprakli Marul Salatasi (rose petal salad with parsley and mint)

Tava Kebapli Bulgur Pilavi (panfried lamb kebabs with bulgur pilav)

Tutmac Corbasi (lamb and yogurt soup)

Kahve (Turkish coffee)

Kösk Kebabi (lamb kebabs with eggplant)

Badem Helvasi (almond halvah)

Sidebar: Home Cooking in a Konya Restaurant: Kösk Konya Mutfagi (Konya Pavilion Kitchen)

The Guide: where to stay and eat and what to do in Konya

Friday Night Fish Fry

Milwaukee's weekly food gatherings are a delicious, down-home tradition. By Daphne Beal

Recipes: Beer-Battered Haddock

Brandy Old-Fashioned

German Coleslaw

German Potato Pancakes

Carrot Cake

The Guide: Where to stay and eat in Milwaukee

In the Saveur Kitchen: The beauty and variety of Turkish breakfasts, by Margo True; frying dried spices in oil (tarka) is the essence of Indian food, by Todd Coleman; the evolution of the maraschino cherry, by Liz Pearson

Recipe: Mirtoga (browned-flour scrambled eggs)

Moment: Chicago White Sox fan with one of those double-beer-can-holder hats.